The Nigerian Government has launched an online platforms that will connect foreign businesses that want to do business with Nigerians.
The projects, launched in Abuja, the country’s capital, which is an initiative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are the Nigerian Global Business Match, NGBN, Nigerian Global Citizens’ Help Desk, NGCHD and the Unified Online Presence.
President Muhammadu Buhari launched the online business match-making portal designed to match businesses in Nigeria with businesses around the world through a secured portal managed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
He said the projects were targeted towards achieving the mandates given to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and would be extremely beneficial to Nigerians abroad.
President Buhari, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Professor Ibrahim Gambari, appreciated partner ministries, departments and agencies for their contributions and support, particularly those that provided data base access for verification purposes.
“I would like to urge the staff of the Ministry, especially those who will interface directly with this system to utilise them diligently and ensure effective delivery of qualitative service to Nigerian citizens,” Buhari stated.
President Buhari further reiterated the need to maintain the legacy projects, as well as improve upon them as innovation permit so that they can compete globally.
Help Desk
Also launched were the Nigeria Citizens’ Help Desk, a 247 Omni Channel Help Desk offering calls, chats, and email support to Nigerian citizens abroad, especially in cases of emergency through a single phone number.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, explained that the ministry felt the need to leverage on its physical presence in a hundred countries around the world.
He said it would help to promote the portal and direct the attention of the businesses in those hundred countries unto the portal where Nigerian businesses would be able to upload all their information, as well as foreign businesses, in a secured environment as supported by the government, the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and others.
“Secure environment in which businesses can meet each other and hopefully, we will be able to have a live match,” Onyeama stated.
Mr. Onyeama further said the portal would be a unique matching tool for businesses and opening up the world for Nigerian businesses seamlessly.
The Minister said the second initiative was part of the Ministry’s citizens’ diplomacy, saying that there were huge numbers of Nigerians around the world.
“That is one of the reasons why I am also delighted that the Executive Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, was able to come here because he has been a champion for the Nigerian trafficking victims around the world and he has been engaged in protecting young, vulnerable Nigerians, who had been trafficked or who could be trafficked if the necessary measures are not put in place,” Mr. Onyeama explained.
Speaking at the launch, Geoffrey Onyeama, said the legacy projects are aimed at launching Nigeria to the global market.
He said, “The Nigerian Global Business Match is based on the framework of economic diplomacy initiative. And essentially what it is, is a market access for Nigerian, who is able to access foreign markets more easily and without all the red tape and also for foreign businesses to be able to access the Nigerian market and also for the businesses that are able to meet some of the business relationships.”
In his remarks, Governor Godwin Obaseki, said the event was quite significant, stating that the platform provided for Nigerians in the Diaspora and other relevant sister agencies with an omni channel that provides services where Nigerians can reach out for help, advisory services and also to report in cases of emergencies.
“This service would be of tremendous benefit to citizens in the Diaspora, who as you are aware, are spread out all over the world,” Obaseki noted.
Mr. Obaseki further said the recent Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the crisis in Sudan, clearly demonstrated the need for a trusted and dependable channel where citizens can report emergencies and seek help, especially from Abuja and Nigeria.
The Nigeria Global Business Match, NGBM is a real-time online one stop-shop where foreign businesses seeking to do business in Nigeria can transparently conduct end to end transactions with Nigerian registered and verified businesses in a secured and trusted online platform.
NGNM provides a database of registered Nigerian businesses to its foreign counterparts.
Also launched was the Unified Online Presence under Diplomatic Service Digitalization initiative.
This will see all the country’s missions and the ministry in one secure Web space; consequently, all the missions and Ministry will now have a uniform naming pattern.
Confidence Okwuchi
