London, 24 April 2022 (TDI): On April 26, London will witness the 7th bi-annual meeting of the UK-Nigeria Economic Development Forum. The Nigerian Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Niyi Adebayo, and the official handle of the Minister of State, Budget, and National Planning, Prince Clem Ikanade Agba will lead a delegation to attend the forum in London. The UK Minister of Department for International Trade, Penny Mordaunt will host the talks during the forum.
AN OVERVIEW OF THE UK-NIGERIA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FORUM
The former Prime Minister of the UK firstly launched the UK-Nigeria Economic Development Forum in 2018. Since its establishment, the forum has offered an official platform for UK and Nigeria to promote trade and investment relationships. Moreover, the forum serves as a mechanism for both sides to solve market access barriers. Also, both sides could discuss opportunities and challenges for business during the meetings.
The forum is held every six months. The last forum was held on October 15th, 2021. During the 6th forum, delegates from UK and Nigeria mainly focused on bilateral trade cooperation under the context of COVID-19.
Specifically, representatives agreed on the significance of increasing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in non-oil sectors in Nigeria. Besides, in the healthcare sector, UK and Nigeria had a deal worth £10.56 million for a hospital project.
Furthermore, both sides also discussed challenges and priorities, especially for the post-COVID-19 era. Additionally, as the Nigerian government was preparing to attend the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), the meeting also talked about the revision of Nigeria’s Nationally determined Contributions (NDCs).
UK-NIGERIA ECONOMIC RELATIONSHIP THIS YEAR
On January 13th this year, the Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) hosted the first Breakfast Meeting of the year themed “2022 Economic Outlook”. The event was sponsored by the First Bank of Nigeria, which shows the significance of UK-Nigerian economic interaction.
In addition, UK-Nigeria economic partnership does not only pay attention to trade and investment in traditional sectors. On March 28, 2022, UK and Nigeria had a meeting in Lagos to discuss bilateral investment in the creative industry. The Nigerian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama met with Helen Grant, the British Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy during this meeting.
According to the data from the British government, in the 12 months ending September 2021, the total trade in goods and services between the UK and Nigeria was worth £3.5 billion. The data shows an increase of 1.9% compared with the former year.
Thus, we can look forward to the performance of the UK-Nigeria economic relationship this year. Undoubtedly, the coming UK-Nigeria Economic Development Forum will offer more clues and information on the bilateral relationship this year.
