Why FG is strengthening Arab-Africa economic ties – Edun

By Emma Ujah, Abuja Bureau Chief

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, has said that the federal government is strengthening Arab-Africa economic relations to grow the economies of both regions.

He spoke at the Arab-Africa Trade Bridges’ B2B Matchmaking event in Abuja on Thursday.

Me Edun said, “We are gathered here for this fifth edition of Arab-Africa Trade Bridges, B2B matchmaking event, particularly in the agribusiness sector, the all-important agribusiness sector.

“This gathering is not a side event. It is really a part of the statutory functions and governance obligations under the Arab-Africa Cooperation.

“It’s also a powerful expression of our shared ambition to transform Arab-Africa trade relations.

“And when we say transform, we are talking about real growth, to take what is potential now to high performance and to move from dialogue to action to deals and to move from goodwill and good intentions to economic growth.”

The minister said that at the G20 in Johannesburg, his team and other participants focused on the needs of developing countries, starting with economic growth as the way out of poverty.

He said, “I emphasised that there is a need to grow the economies through investment in productive sectors that increases productivity, that creates jobs, and that gives people the incomes that lift them out of poverty.

“And that emphasis on growth was juxtaposed and placed side by side with the reality of the constrained fiscal space that particularly African countries are facing with high debt burdens, in many cases, high debt servicing requirements that are gulping up funds that could otherwise be used for public investment.”

He said that the private sector held the key to economic growth and must be encouraged through the provision of a conducive business environment for operators in that sector to thrive.

According to him, “Really, it is the private sector that is the real source of investment, whether it’s foreign direct investment or domestic investment.

“And so we are here looking at ways in which investments can be unleashed, and in this particular case, cross-border, intra-African investment.

“That really is the heart of what we are doing here under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda to reform the Nigerian economy.

According to him,

“Nigeria is implementing bold actions to reposition for rapid, sustained and inclusive growth.”

The macroeconomic situation in Nigeria, the minister said, has prepared the nation for being a very attractive, competitive and even compelling investment destination.

Mr Edun noted that multilateralism of the last decades was fast receding, with concessional financing and even overseas development assistance flows to developing countries, to Africa, having turned negative.

The situation, he said, called for looking inwards for investments.

“We have to trade more with each other.

“We have to grow our economies together, the savings of our people being invested in productive activity,” he said.

In his remarks, the CEO of the ITFC, Engr Adeen Al Aama, disclosed that about 80 businesses participated in the event.

He challenged those present to consolidate their contacts into concrete partnerships that would advance the economies of the African and Arab nations.

He said that the 5th B2B event focused on agribusiness, considering the importance of the sector in the economy of every nation.

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