President of the Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce (NACC), Sheriff Balogun, has stated that economic diversification is necessary to shore up the country’s foreign direct investment (FDI).

Speaking at a press conference in Lagos as part of activities leading to the chamber’s Presidential Inaugural Dinner and Award Night scheduled for April 12 in Lagos, Balogun noted that key channels of foreign investment flow to Nigeria include agriculture.

Adding that Nigeria is blessed with over 84 million hectares of agro-land with barely 34 per cent cultivated, he said the soil can grow many crops to support other sectors.

“Nigeria is the largest cassava producer in the world and the raw material for most tablets is pharmaceutical grade cassava starch. This is an opportunity we can explore and harness. Looking at the production of electric cars and even renewable energy, Nigeria possesses strategic minerals like cobalt, titanium, lithium and manganese that are used in producing EV batteries, these are areas we should explore and play up.

“While we don’t want to export these in their raw form as it would give us very little value, we should partner with companies willing to set up here, refine these items and export them in a manner that would be beneficial to all,” he said.

Speaking on access to U.S. markets, he said local exporters still struggle to meet international standards and understand the market.

https://guardian.ng/business-services/industry/nacc-urges-economic-diversification-charts-path-to-improved-fdi/