VISITING United Kingdom Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Kemi Badenoch, on Tuesday signed an Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership (ETIP) with Nigeria to boost trade and investment between the two countries and unlock new opportunities for UK and Nigerian businesses.
Badenoch signed the ETIP alongside her Nigerian counterpart, Trade Minister, Doris Nkiruka Uzoka-Anite, in Abuja.
The ETIP is the first the UK has signed with an African country and is designed to grow the UK and Nigeria’s already thriving trading relationship, which totalled £7 billion in the year to September 2023.
Uzoka-Anite said: “The UK is one of our long-standing strategic partners with whom we share strong ties, and it gladdens me that this relationship is set to deepen as we sign the Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership.
“This partnership will see Nigeria-UK relations move beyond one of shared history and strong ties to one of shared economic prosperity. From increasing market access and supporting our vibrant businesses to creating more jobs and accelerating greater investments in sectors of mutual interests.”
Badenoch said: “The UK and Nigeria are vital partners, with longstanding historical and economic ties.
“UK businesses are already seeing huge success in Nigeria – one of the fastest growing economies in the world.
“I’m delighted to be here to sign our new enhanced partnership which will allow UK firms to export their world-class goods and services more easily and expand their footprint in Nigeria.”
During Badenoch’s visit, a groundbreaking ceremony took place at Abuja’s first industrial park built by UK-Turkish construction firm Zeberced Ltd. to open its support services areas at the site.
Badenoch also witnessed the signing of a landmark energy agreement between UK-based energy firm, Konexa, and Nigerian power generation company North South Power (NSP).
The agreement will enable Konexa to supply Nigerian Breweries PLC with 100 percent renewable power, promote sustainable development and clean energy adoption, and lead to infrastructure investments of over £14 million.
Konexa CEO, Pradeep Pursnani, said: “This is a very important milestone for Konexa, North South Power, Nigerian Breweries, and all our investment partners. Over the last few years, Konexa has been working on a disruptive model that matches customer energy demand with renewable energy supply.
“We are looking forward to investing more than £120m in renewable energy generation, transmission, distribution, and battery storage solutions to help our customers transition away from the use of fossil fuel.”
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