{"id":425397,"date":"2024-11-29T08:30:47","date_gmt":"2024-11-29T08:30:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/?p=425397"},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-29T14:00:00","slug":"Nigerian-president-woos-French-investment-on-state-visit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/Nigerian-president-woos-French-investment-on-state-visit\/","title":{"rendered":"Nigerian president woos French investment on state visit"},"content":{"rendered":"

President Bola Tinubu said on Thursday Nigeria is “open for business” as he embarked on a state visit to France, with Paris looking to boost ties in English-speaking Africa following a series of setbacks with former allies on the continent.<\/p>\n

The 72-year-old president met with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, during the first official state visit by a Nigerian leader in more than two decades.<\/p>\n

Macron, 46, who has sought a “renewal” between Paris and Africa since his 2017 election, said his country will “continue to invest” in Nigeria, at a time when France’s influence on the continent is waning following military coups and changing attitudes.<\/p>\n

The west African country is the continent’s leading oil producer and has a robust film industry, dubbed “Nollywood”.<\/p>\n

But challenges including insecurity and corruption have left 129 million Nigerians\u00a0— more than half the country’s population — living below the poverty line.<\/p>\n

For Tinubu, who has been battling soaring inflation and food prices, the visit represents an opportunity to tap economic investment.<\/p>\n

“Nigeria is open for business,” he said after his meeting with Macron, adding it should be taken “for a serious country and partner”.<\/p>\n

– Colonial past –<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

France’s pivot towards English-speaking Africa signals Macron’s desire to reverse the country’s declining influence on the continent, with visits to Nigeria in 2018, Ethiopia in 2019 and South Africa in 2021.<\/p>\n

France suffered a blow when a series of coups from 2020 hit its former colonies in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, with new military rulers breaking ties with the ex-colonial ruler and veering towards Russia.<\/p>\n

The three Sahel countries are battling jihadist violence that erupted in northern Mali in 2012 and spread to Niger and Burkina Faso in 2015.<\/p>\n

“France’s leading trading partners in Africa are not French-speaking”, said Togolese economist Kako Nubukpo.<\/p>\n

Nigeria was France’s number-one trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa in 2023, followed by South Africa, according to the French customs authority.<\/p>\n

France still holds significant sway despite competition from China, India and Turkey, said Alain Antil, a researcher in sub-Saharan Africa at the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI).<\/p>\n

This is especially true in English-speaking countries, where France “is not held back by its colonial past”, he told AFP.<\/p>\n

And with urbanisation — up to 700 million new city dwellers by 2050 — and an emerging middle class, countries throughout Africa are seeking to take advantage of French investment to boost growth.<\/p>\n

Tinubu said Nigeria needs France to help develop its “vibrant youth population, well-educated, and ready to be trained”, with promises from Macron to invest in the cultural sector.<\/p>\n

“France wants to work alongside you,” said Macron.<\/p>\n

– ‘Partnership of equals’ –<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

With at least 220 million inhabitants, Nigeria represents a promising market despite the challenges posed by insecurity and corruption.<\/p>\n

Tinubu addressed investors’ concerns, saying his government is “working to stabilise the security situation in Nigeria”, but acknowledged the country still needs to do more.<\/p>\n

Since 2009, northern Nigeria has been plagued by various jihadist groups, including Boko Haram and a rival faction, the Islamic State in West Africa (ISWAP) group, as well as armed criminal gangs.<\/p>\n

According to a diplomatic source who asked not to be named, the visit “epitomises” France’s strategy in anglophone Africa. Nigeria “wants a partnership of equals, not a lecture”, especially on human rights, the source added.<\/p>\n

Paris hopes to court others on the continent at the 2026 Africa-France Summit, where France sees opportunities in countries like Kenya and Zambia.<\/p>\n

ekf\/sjw\/jhb<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country<\/p>\n

-Olympia DE MAISMONT
<\/figcaption><\/figure>

<\/p>\n

Bola Tinubu is the first Nigerian leader to come to France on a state visit since 2000<\/p>\n

-Sarah Meyssonnier
<\/figcaption><\/figure>

<\/p>\n

Tinubu is the chairman of the west African economic bloc ECOWAS<\/p>\n

-Sarah Meyssonnier
<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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