Much potential for SL-Nigeria trade

by Lalin Fernandopulle

There is immense potential for trade and tourism between Sri Lanka and Nigeria which have many similarities that should be made use of to boost bilateral relations, Nigerian High Commissioner S.U. Ahmed told a seminar on 'Bilateral Trade between Sri Lanka and Nigeria' organised by the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka recently.

"Trade and tourism between Sri Lanka and Nigeria have been insignificant as relations between both countries have been abysmally low due to the wrong perception of each other. Trade between the two countries take place at an unofficial level. There is ample scope for trade and tourism between our countries which should be explored through mutual cooperation," he said.

"We would love to have Ceylon Tea and garments which are known the world over," Ahmed said. However, the Nigerian trade delegation said Sri Lanka will have to compete with aggressive marketing before setting up operations in Nigeria which has a large population of Indian and Pakistani nationals.

Nigeria, a West African Federal Republic, is an oil and mineral rich country ranked as a regional power in the African continent with a population exceeding 160 million, the highest in the region. Ahmed said both countries should get over the wrong perception of each other through education and and more interaction. Sri Lanka should do more marketing in the African region to woo tourists.

Nigeria's fascinatiing wildlife parks and warm springs have made it a tourism hot spot in the African continent. The Yankari national park which is home to natural warm water springs and a range of exotic birds and wild animals in the Northeast, the Obudu mountain resort and the Ikogosi warm spring are some of the tourism attractions of Nigeria.

The notion of Sri Lanka among Nigerians is Ceylon in the 1950s which is not the case when one steps out of the plane at the airport.

The setting up of the Joint Commission which has been postponed will help strengthen relations between Sri Lanka and Nigeria which has lot to offer for investment and mutual cooperation in the power and mineral sector, the High Commissioner said.Nigeria has large deposits of oil, gas, bitumen and minerals such as gold, lead, zinc, iron ore, kaolin, marble and coal. The Nigerian economy has remained relatively strong over the past several years recording an annual average GDP growth of around seven percent. The non oil sector has been the main driver of growth which shows the government's efforts to diversify the economy, an official of the Nigerian High Commission said.

The Nigerian government is focused on developing the mineral resource sector as a viable source of additional revenue by offering five-year tax holidays and zero import duty for solid minerals, he said. The agriculture sector in Nigeria is another promising sector with potential for investment in food processing, preservation and livestock development.

The Nigerian government offers zero duty on imports, technical support through research and development institutes, tax holidays for agri-processing industry and also banking facilities. There is potential for Ceylon Tea in Nigeria which is today dominated by Chinese Green Tea.

An official said he preferred black tea from Sri Lanka.The Nigerian government has put in place a range of incentives to attract investors to the agriculture sector. Nigeria is endowed with fertile and arable land running into millions of hectares across different regions which are suitable for crop cultivation and livestock breeding.

The country is blessed with favourable weather and flowing rivers for agricultural production.

Telecommunication, tourism, transportation and financial and banking are other areas of investment in Nigeria.

There is also plenty of scope for investment and joint venture collaboration in the power sector in areas such as setting up power plants expanding transmission lines, supply of power for the industrial sector, the Nigerian officials said.

Nigeria is the largest producer of oil in Africa and has abundant and growing resources of crude oil and gas with high return on investment in the sector.

The Nigerian government remains committed to deregulate pricing mechanisms, licence private producers and independent refineries. It seeks to create a private sector-led industry for greater transparency, Ahmed said.