The United State Government has once more expressed its readiness to partner with the Nigerian Government in strengthening her Small and Medium Enterprise Industry for global competiveness.
The US government made this known through the Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs, Ambassador Charles Rivkin, during a Press Availability session, organized by the United States Embassy in Nigeria, on the sidelines of the SME Financing Conference 2015, organized by the Nigeria-American Chamber of Commerce, Kaduna Chapter, in collaboration with the Embassy of United States of America, Economic Affairs Section, Nigeria. The event which was held on Tuesday 8 September, 2015, in Sheraton Hotel, Abuja; availed SMEs an opportunity of interacting with funding partners and other major stakeholders, on ways of securing funds and building capacity for competitive edge.
Ambassador Rivkins, while continuing, maintained that the United States sees Nigeria as one of its most important partners in Africa. In his words, “Nigeria has the largest population and the biggest economy, and we look to Nigeria not only as a friend and ally but also as a leader that can be Africa’s biggest engine of growth over the coming decades.”
He also added that, “Nigeria has much more to offer the world than oil and gas. U.S. Companies want to invest in Nigeria and its people-if there are investor friendly policies and reforms that will make Nigeria and attractive place to do business. We fully support President Buhari’s commitment to fighting corruption, which will go a long way toward making Nigeria a more attractive place to invest.”
Ambassador Rivkin will also be meeting with some investment promotion agencies and stakeholders in the country’s movie industry, to look at ways of supporting their efforts and boosting relations between them and their United States counterparts.
The Conference also had in attendance the Vice President of Nigeria, Prof. Yomi Osinbajo; Niger State Governor, Alh. Abubakar Sani Bello; Managing Director, Nigerian Exim Bank, Dr. Robert Orya, amongst other stakeholders.
