Foreign and Military Affairs

Nigerian Ambassador: Chinese investment in Nigeria on the rise

(China Daily)
Updated: 2011-03-08 11:57

Aminu Wali, Nigerian Ambassador to China, talks to China Daily about his view of China's 12th Five Year Plan.

China Daily: Volume of trade between Nigeria and China has risen from $2.3 billion in 2007 to at least $7.5 billion in 2010. As China implements its 12th Five Year Plan, how do you expect bilateral trade to develop and are there any future cooperation between the two countries?

Aminu Wali, Nigerian Ambassador to China

Ambassador: May I congratulate China for its monumental rise to the second place in world economy as at today. It is an aspiration that Nigeria has expected for sometime now. To underscore the importance of China to our economy, the Central Bank of Nigeria had recently added the Chinese currency, the Yuan, to the basket of convertible currencies to the Naira. This development was greeted with great enthusiasm and fanfare by the Chinese business community in Nigeria, as it will enhance both currencies, and people to people cooperation.

Sino-Nigeria economic relations continued to experience steady growth and witnessed a large leap forward at the turn of the country, and while waiting for official figures of trade volume as at the end of December 2010, I am certain, we have surpassed records hitherto achieved in 2008, with total Chinese investment in Nigeria nearly 8 billion dollars which shows increase participation of Chinese entrepreneurs doing business in Nigeria.

On the basis of our political relations, our leaders have reaffirmed that the basic principles guiding Sino-Nigerian relationship in the 21st century are: sincere friendship, mutual trust, mutual benefit and common development, enhanced consultation and mutual support, and commitment to a long term prospective and future-oriented relationship. The attainment of these objectives will serve as a catalyst towards ushering greater opportunities for both countries and strengthening the win-win engagement that is the hallmark of our relations.