Deputy Minister of Finland Visits Nigeria with Business Delegation
The Deputy Minister for External Economic Relations of Finland, Mr. Matti Anttonen, will visit Nigeria with a high-level business delegation of more than 10 Finnish companies cutting across information and communication technology, telecommunications, power, oil and gas, health and education between February 3 and 4th 4 Abuja.
In a statement by the Finnish Embassy in Nigeria, the deputy minister who will also visit Ghana, is said to be looking forward to meeting ministers and representatives of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government to explore ways of promoting trade between Finland and Nigeria.
Anttonen, who will also be in Lagos on the February 5, would speak at a business event that would bring together important stakeholders in business, being organised by Nigerian-Finnish Organisation.
Expressing her delight about the delegation’s visit to Nigeria, the Finland’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Ms Pirjo Suomela-Chowdhury, said she sees the visit as a great opportunity to strengthen trade and economic relations between her country and Nigeria and that in Finland’s interest towards Nigeria as a business destination is growing.
According to her, “Already, there are important Finnish companies doing business in the country, and many more opportunities exist. As the largest economy on the African continent, with the biggest population and almost unlimited possibilities, Nigeria is an obvious destination in Africa when promoting business and economic ties,” Suomela-Chowdhury said.
The ambassador who believes that expanding trade between her country and Nigeria would offer win-win opportunities that would benefit both countries and their people, noted that the visiting business delegation represents sectors in which Finland has strong know-how and expertise that can offer solutions in areas that are important priorities for Nigeria.
According the ambassador, “ICT and digitalisation, for instance, can be very instrumental in promoting good governance and in fighting corruption, as well as providing solutions in education and health.
The statement further said with the new government now in place and with the country’s strong focus on promoting governance, security and sustainable inclusive economy, it is more important than ever to make the most of the existing opportunities between the two countries.
Suomela-Chowdhury who believes that the delegation would return to Finland with many new concrete ideas and plans for stronger trade ties between Finland and Nigeria, said: “For Finnish companies, a visit like this is an excellent way to establish and strengthen important networks, to share what they have to offer, and to learn about the many opportunities that Nigeria offers.”