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Nigeria attracts $8bn in Foreign Direct Investment – FG

By BusinessNews Staff on January 17, 2014

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prof. Viola Onwuliri, has put the value of Foreign Direct Investment in the Nigerian economy at $8bn.

She stated this at a press briefing on Thursday in Abuja where she gave the scorecard of her ministry for 2013.

She said, “In collaboration with the relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies, the Foreign Direct Investment to Nigeria as at the last count was $8bn. That was a very good one. We will continue to use the structure of the ministry to attract foreign investment in various areas.

“Any investment that comes from outside the shores of this country should be credited to the work of the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs because we put in place the legal framework; we put in place the structure and we also build the confidence of potential investors. We are the ones that sell the Nigerian image. We are happy it is soaring higher and higher. We join Mr. President in building support for this great country.”

Onwuliri, who denied having a senatorial ambition, said many moribund agreements like that with the Philippines, which was signed 27 years ago, had been revived under her leadership.

She said, “I have no senatorial ambition. What I am doing is to ensure that Mr. President’s Transformation Agenda yields maximum benefits to Nigeria and is carried out to the letter, especially in the area of foreign policy; and to ensure that we have the best foreign policy ever to cater for Nigerians in the Diaspora as well as international travellers, and to boost the overall image of the country.”

According to her, the ministry secured 34 international elective positions in the year under review and also embarked on robust engagements with the international community to attract foreign investments into the country.

The minister said, “Look at us today; we have attracted investment in the area of power. Power has improved tremendously. If other people, who were in power, had been working since, we won’t be talking about power in 2014; the problem would have been a thing of the past. We won’t be talking about education and other things. We would have been talking about space and some other things.

“When you are talking about unemployment, you are looking at President (Goodluck) Jonathan, whereas some other people had been ruling this country and left the people unemployed; the thing now continues to accumulate.

“Instead of people commending him (Jonathan), especially those who were part of the problem, they are now the ones pontificating. We should look at this dispassionately and know where our problems are and begin to tackle them and appreciate somebody who is doing a good job.

“It is important that Nigerians believe in their country. It is not good to run down our country.”

Onwuliri said the ministry under her had been tackling emerging and current consular issues in many parts of the world to protect the interest of Nigerians in their host countries.

She said the country, through her ministry, participated in various African Union strategic partnerships and co-operational arrangements like the African-EU, African-South- America, African-Turkey, African-Japan, African-Indian, African South-Korea, African-China and African-Arab league meetings, among others.

The minister, who described terrorism as a global scourge, stressed the need for concerted global efforts to overcome it.

She said the ministry had also mobilised international and regional support for Nigeria to counter terrorism, with the United States, United Kingdom and Italy offering to help through the office of the National Security Adviser.

[Punch]

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