SPEAKER WANTS PARTNERSHIP WITH SAUDI ARABIA TO BUILD REFINERIES, HOSPITALS, FIGHT GLOBAL WARMING 15-02-24
By Sadiq Aminu The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dr. Tajudeen Abbas has called for strategic partnership with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to shore up investment opportunities in Nigeria.
Speaking during a courtesy call on him by Saudi Arabia Nigerian Parliamentary Friendship Group, the Speaker who noted that the age long diplomatic ties between Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, spanning over 25 years, advocated for more collaboration in the areas of trade and investment, tourism, oil and gas and infrastructure.
Represented by the Deputy Speaker of the House, Mr. Benjamin said robust collaboration in various sectors of the economy will help both nations.
“Oil and gas, we are going to leverage your expertise for mutual benefits. We are tired of crude oil exports. We want to go into refined products and you’ve established yourself in that space. We want strategic partnership along that corridor.
He called for balance of trade between both countries, stressing the Nigeria’s determination to grow its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Earlier, the leader of the delegation, Dr Abdullah Hamad Alsalamah said their mission was to ultimately seek new ways to strengthen the partnership with Nigeria in areas of mutual benefits.
In a related development the Speaker of the House of Representatives Dr. Abbas Tajudeen says the 10th House of Representatives is committed to work with the Executive arm towards opening up opportunities in the maritime sector to boost Nigeria’s economy through foreign exchange earnings and job creation.
Dr. Tajudeen stated this when the leadership of Nigeria Ship Owners Association, with their counterparts from Greece paid him a courtesy visit in his office.
The Speaker said the House would study all the documents presented by the delegation with a view to setting the ball rolling in due course.
Dr. Tajudeen expressed his readiness to meet with the ship owners for further engagement, if necessary, and thanked them for the visit.
Earlier in his remarks, the Chairman of the Ship Owners Association of Nigeria, His Royal Majesty, Chijioke Collins, commended the Speaker for being passionate about the country, particularly the growth and development of the maritime sector.
The royal father lamented that Nigeria is the only seafaring nation where there is no recorded success story in shipping, adding that no country could become a shipping hub without having maritime “bank and ship.”
He urged the Federal Government to change its imports and exports policy to attract more revenue to the maritime sector.