The Head, Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Nigeria (DGIC), Dr. Marc Lucassen has said German companies operating in Nigeria currently generate an annual turnover of $1 billion.
He also disclosed that efforts were being made to ensure that more German investors come into Nigeria to take advantage of the investment opportunities in the country. Lucassen, said the companies, which provide direct employment to about 10,000 Nigerians and operate in all sectors of the economy, are here to stay.
The delegate of DGIC stated this at a press conference to announce the seventh edition of the German-Nigerian Business Forum (GNBF) scheduled to hold from June 20 to 21, 2018 in Lagos.
“The Germany business community is here in Nigeria to slowly grow and we are here to stay. We will not go because of economic crises. We are here for the good times and bad times.
“We are covering all sectors, from finance, infrastructure, energy, automobile, to information technology. So the Germany firms are in all sectors and our target is to scale up this presence and in order to do this, our job as bilateral organisation is to provide the platform of activities for Germany investors to come here, look at the place, get a feel of the environment and start to invest,” he said.
However, Lucassen noted that for more foreign investors to invest in Nigeria, domestic investors must show the way by investing in the country.
“Foreign investors will come if they see that Nigerian investors are investing as well. Although there are already German firms in Nigeria, what we also are interested in is to partner Nigerian investors and to co-finance Nigerian investors because this will tell German investors that Nigerian believe in their own economy,” he said.
Speaking on the business forum, Lucassen said the theme is: “Leveraging Partnership for Economic Growth,” explaining that it would extensively highlight the importance and implementation of partnership at different levels and sectors for both Nigeria and Germany.
“Over the years, there have been initiatives to establish a collaborative and mutually beneficial bi-lateral relationship across broad-ranging sectors including diplomacy, security as well as trade and investment.
“The GNBF, which holds alternately in Germany and Nigerian-Germany Business Association and Afrika-Verein der Deutschen Wirtschaft back in 2007,” he said.
According to him, the two-day event would focus on key sectors such as agribusiness and food processing; energy with a special focus on renewable energy and energy efficiency; infrastructure and access to finance; digitisation and start-ups; technical vocational education and training.
Lucassen also disclosed that the event would feature panel discussions by different experts and stakeholders on the opportunities, challenges and latest developments in those fields.
