Nigeria To Enhance Its Non-Oil Revenue Streams, Strengthen Ties With Singapore.

Amb. Dunoma Umar Ahmed, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the leader of the Singaporean delegation, Amb. Maliki Osman during the visit to the Foreign Affairs Ministry recently, in Abuja.

"This partnership aims to support Nigeria’s economic growth and improve its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) through diversified avenues beyond oil." Amb. Dunoma Umar Ahmed, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“We appreciate the capacity-building courses being offered by the Singaporean government, 700 Nigerian officials have already benefited from this initiative. We appeal for more robust engagements with our country.”

“As of 2022, Singaporean companies have invested over $4.5 billion into Nigeria. Our investments span across agribusiness, oil and gas, transport and logistics, and infrastructure sectors." Amb. Maliki Osman, Minister in the Prime Minister's Office of Singapore, and leader of the Singaporean delegation.

Determined to put Nigeria on the World map of economic hub, the Federal Government of Nigeria through the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs is intensifying its collaboration with Singapore in an effort to enhance its non-oil revenue streams.

This was made known during a recent meeting with delegations from Singapore, hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Ambassador Dunoma Umar Ahmed, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, had stated that, "this partnership aims to support Nigeria’s economic growth and improve its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) through diversified avenues beyond oil".

Dunoma Ahmed said; “The main focus of our meeting is to underscore the importance of the relationship that is between us. We are working towards elevating our relationship and enhancing existing collaboration and cooperation.

"We want to recognize and appreciate the presence and contribution of some Singaporean companies that are existing in Nigeria that are contributing to job creation and the GDP of the country. 

Ahmed Dunoma emphasized that, as part of efforts to further boost the growth, the Nigerian government is committed to creating an enabling environment for businesses to flourish.

“We also want to request for more companies to invest in Nigeria because the Government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is working on diversifying the economy, moving towards the non-oil sector, especially into mining, agriculture, renewable energy and the rest of them.

“I believe you have very competent companies that can take advantage of business opportunities that exist in the country. Nigeria is now a good business destination that will accommodate many Singaporean companies because we have the enabling environment.”

He added that, “We appreciate the capacity-building courses being offered by the Singaporean government, 700 Nigerian officials have already benefited from this initiative. We appeal for more robust engagements with our country.”

The Permanent Secretary also revealed that Nigeria has submitted a draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Technical Vocational Educational Training (TVET) to the Singaporean delegation. 

“We believe this will be mutually beneficial for both countries.” 

During his remarks, the Minister in the Prime Minister's Office of Singapore, Dr. Maliki Osman, and leader of the visiting delegation spoke about the deepening of economic relations between the two nations.

According to Dr Maliki, “As of 2022, Singaporean companies have invested over $4.5 billion into Nigeria. Our investments span across agribusiness, oil and gas, transport and logistics, and infrastructure sectors.

He highlighted the existing agreements fostering trade and investment, including the Nigeria-Singapore Bilateral Investment Treaty and the Singapore-Nigeria Air Services Agreement. 

“We welcome stronger bilateral and political consultations, and we are here to support Nigeria’s developmental pathways,” he asserted.

The discussion also touched upon opportunities for youth development. “Nigeria, with its young population and a median age of 17 years, holds tremendous potential for manpower development,” Osman noted.

Recognizing Singapore’s transition from resource scarcity to a knowledge-driven economy, Osman said; “We are eager to share our experiences in human capacity development with our Nigerian counterparts.”

Osman also spoke about the Singapore African Partnership initiative, which aims to customize training programs tailored to African nations’ needs.

“We are willing to prioritize capacity building for Nigerian officials,” adding that opportunities for post-graduate scholarships for senior officials in Singapore are also on the table.

Dr Maliki assured that, “We want to create more economic engagements in these frontiers, working closely together despite the global economic challenges we face."