PIC: L-R:Minister of Industry, Trade andInvestment, Doris Nkiruka Uzoka-Anite sign ETIP agreement with The UK Minister for Trade and Business, Kemi Badenoch in Abuja on Tuesday.
Nigeria and the UK government on Tuesday signed a partnership agreement to deepen their relationship in trade and investment as well as growth and development.
The UK Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Kemi Badenoch, and the Nigerian Trade Minister, Doris Nkiruka Uzoka-Anite signed the Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership (ETIP) in Abuja.
Described as the first of its kind to be signed with an African country, Badenoch said the agreement would boost trade and investment between the two countries and unlock new opportunities for UK and Nigerian businesses.
The UK Secretary of State who announced this in Abuja said the partnership would build on the already £7bn strong UK-Nigeria trading relationship and unlock new opportunities in sectors such as legal, financial services and clean energy.
“This arrangement will pave the way for opportunities in sectors crucial to both economies, such as finance and legal services as well as foster new collaborations in innovative areas like the creatives industry,“ she said.
UK exports to Nigeria stood at about £4 bn in the 12 months to the end of September 2023, an increase of 3 percent in current prices from the 12 months to September 2022.
Of this, £1.3 bn were goods and £2.6 bn were services.
The visit by the Secretary of State comes a week ahead of a UK Government-led fashion and beauty trade delegation to Nigeria.
She said the ETIP also initiates further collaboration on the UK’s ambitious Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) launched last year, which puts in place simpler and more generous trading terms for Nigeria and 36 other African countries.
With Nigeria as a major beneficiary of changes introduced by the DCTS, the new partnership agreement would see tariff reductions on over 3,000 products, meaning that 99 percent of existing Nigerian exports to the UK by value would be duty free.
“Tariffs have been removed on Nigerian goods which promote value addition in important non-oil export sectors such as cocoa butter and paste, sesame oil and clothing and apparel. These changes will boost trade with the UK and support the Federal Government of Nigeria’s wider trade policy priorities,“ Badenoch said.
Tariffs have been removed on Nigerian goods in important non-oil export sectors such as cocoa butter and paste, sesame oil and clothing and apparel.
For example, 14 percent of tariffs have been removed on prepared tomatoes, 4.5 percent on sesame oil, 6.4 percent for woven cotton, 4.5 percent on cocoa paste, and 12.5 percent on plantains.
Working groups and business dialogues would take place to ensure businesses on both sides benefit and have access to the opportunities the ETIP presents.
Following the Secretary of State’s visit, the Deputy Trade Commissioner for Africa, would be leading a fashion and beauty retail Trade Mission from the UK to Nigeria with 8 UK brands looking to form retail and e-commerce partnerships in Nigeria. These include the Boohoo Group, Kartel Watches and The Gel Bottle amongst others.
Konexa has a Generation and Trading license, TUoS (Transmission use of system) agreement with TCN and DUoS (Distribution use of System) agreement with DISCOS that enables them to wheel renewable electrons through transmission and distribution networks to supply customers, including investment in improving the network.
North South Power (NSP) is an indigenous power generation company with over 600MW of operating hydro already operating on the national grid (approx. 8 percent of national energy supply). The Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) being signed is for a new 30MW hydro asset scheduled for commissioning in December 2024
The new deal would help supply Nigerian Breweries (Heineken,Kaduna), with 100 percent renewable power – using a combination of Hydropower, battery storage and a power management system – marking a significant step towards sustainable industrial operations in the region.
Badenoch who is in Nigeria on a three-day working visit, described the UK and Nigeria as vital partners, with longstanding historical and economic ties, adding that UK businesses wre already seeing huge success in Nigeria – one of the fastest growing economies in the world.
She expressed delight over the new agreement, saying the enhanced partnership would allow UK firms to export their goods and services more easily and expand their footprint in Nigeria.
On her part, the Nigerian Minister for Trade, Doris Nkiruka Uzoka-Anite, acknowledged The UK as one of Nigeria’s long-standing strategic partners with whom The UK shares strong ties.
She said the relationship with The UK would deepen with the signing of 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 accelerate greater investments in sectors of mutual interests,” Uzoka-Anite said.
She said the ETIP would help to build on the significant progress already made in resolving market access barriers in the education and financial sectors, which have led to a more favourable trading environment for UK and Nigerian businesses.
In addition, through this partnership, there would be an opportunity to leverage UK and international investment from the London, which is home to the top financial and professional services.
Also speaking, TheCityUK International Managing Director Nicola Watkinson welcomed the new ETIP, describing Nigeria as an important growth market for the UK-based financial and related professional services industry.
“We look forward to continuing our engagement through the working groups to increase market access and remove regulatory friction,” he said
During the visit, Badenoch would hold a groundbreaking ceremony at Abuja’s first industrial park built by UK-Turkish construction firm Zeberced Ltd to open its support services areas.
The UK government has been supporting the firm in a number of areas. The $144m industrial park is set to create 620 direct jobs and 1,650 indirect jobs and provide a base for major firms to access central and northern Nigeria.
Again, The UK trade minister would witness the signing of a landmark energy agreement between UK-based energy firm, Konexa and Nigerian power generation company, North South Power (NSP).
The agreement would xenable 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 Sai the agreement with NSP was 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,” he said.
