Acting President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday called on investors to be serious about investing in the country before it becomes the sixth or seventh largest economy in the world in the next 10 years.
Addressing a meeting of delegates from the Nigerian Initiative for Economic Development and the United States of America at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja, Osinbajo said anyone who does not invest in the country now would regret it in the next couple of years.
“If you’re really serious about investing in Africa, Nigeria is where to come. If you don’t invest now, your company will query you in 10 years. This is a country of 180 million people and in another 10 years time we are probably going to be the sixth or seventh largest country in the world. There is no way we are not going to need power, whether it is off-grid power or on-grid power.
“Power is required by everyone where we have a major power deficit. So, we are going to open up that power sector and anyone who invests in power sector will definitely make money. No question. It is going to be much bigger and better than telecom,” he said.
The Acting President said the present administration is determined to provide the right investment climate that would profitable to entrepreneurs.
“We are insisting that the only way that this country can make the profit that it needs is by private sector investment, beginning with local investment. That’s why we are working so hard on making the investment climate profitable and easy for those who are doing business already, because we believe that those who are doing business already will invariably bring in those who want to do business from outside, foreign investment etcetra. But we think that it must be private sector drive.
“The truth of the matter is that any country that opens itself to free enterprise, the way Nigeria is opening itself to free enterprise, will somehow find that it will work, and that is one of the critical things that we are bringing into the mix,” pointing out that, “Nigeria is a place that is waiting to happen—and it will happen,” he said.
In his remarks, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Okechukwu Enelamah, said government was committed to building confidence for investments in critical areas such as agriculture, education, oil and gas, health, infrastructure, mining, manufacturing, real estate and construction.
He said the launch of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan was aimed at fostering sustainable and accelerated development and restoring economic stability and growth to the country.
Also speaking, chairman of the NIED, Mr. James Fadel, said Nigerians in the United States could invest up to $2 billion dollars in untapped areas such as logistics, housing and security.
He said Nigerians in the diaspora were happy that the government was ready to work with them.
