Invited by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Abuja for a two-day visit this Saturday, November 16. From this first visit by a head of the Indian government to Nigeria in 17 years, the two countries hope to gain new impetus in their already very intense commercial relations.
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The success of Airtel, Bajaj two-wheelers and Godrej hair products bear witness to this: Indian companies are already well established in the Nigeria. Supported by the continent’s third largest Indian diaspora, 200 companies have invested some $27 billion in Africa’s third largest economy. Present in sectors as diverse as textiles, telecommunications, fishing, construction, energy and real estate, they also control 70% of the country’s pharmaceutical market.
For its part, Nigeria mainly sells oil to theIndia. But if New Delhi is its first buyer, Abuja is only the 7th supplier of crude oil to the Asian giant, while the volume of trade between the two countries has also fallen by half over the past 10 years and is now s rise to around $8 billion this year. It is therefore an understatement to say that Nigeria expects a lot from the visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Abuja this Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 November.
Helicopters and fighter planes
On this occasion, the Nigerian authorities hope in particular to diversify their trade with India and soon ship there more refined petroleum products and a greater quantity of processed agricultural products.
For its part, India is certainly eyeing Nigeria’s mines, but also wishes to boost its exchanges with its partner in the space, naval and military fields by going beyond the training already offered in terms of counter-terrorism or the fight against maritime piracy. New Delhi would, for example, like to sell it more equipment, such as helicopters or combat planes.
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