Nigeria and the Kingdom of Netherlands are to establish a Bi-national Commission to boost existing trade and investment ties between the two countries.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Adamu Lamuwa, made this known, while welcoming a delegation from Netherlands in Abuja for the Nigeria- Netherlands Economic Consultation meeting to strengthen bilateral ties in various sectors of the economy.
Ambassador Lamuwa, who was represented by the Director, Economic Trade and Investment Department in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bolaji Akinremi, said the Joint Commission has become necessary especially as the government of President Bola Tinubu is opening up Nigeria to countries that are business inclined.
He added that the volume of trade between both countries is very significant as several Dutch Companies have their operational base in Nigeria.
“The present administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has set a vision of building a thriving and Sustainable economy that will generate wealth, create employment, boost Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) and diversify the Nigerian economy. In this regard, the Government of Nigeria is open to exploring other areas of economic cooperation with the Kingdom of the Netherlands,” he said.
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“This gathering of professionals would foster productive dialogue on Nigeria-Netherlands Economic Cooperation, the Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (IPPA), Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreement (ADTA), and other legal frameworks.
“During this Economic Consultation, Nigeria is willing to explore further, areas of economic cooperation with the Netherlands in Agricultural value chain, secular economy, renewable energy, waterways management and water scarcity.
“Other areas are Oil and Gas, Special Economic Zones, African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and Trade facilitation in Western Africa, Science, Technology and Innovations (STI), Education and Health.”
He noted that in spite of the longstanding bilateral relations between Nigeria and the Netherlands, there is no Joint/Bi-National Commission Agreement between the two countries.
“Negotiation for the establishment of a Joint Commission has been inconclusive since 1987.
“Against this background, the Government of Nigeria would like to reopen the negotiation for the establishment of a Joint/Bi-National Commission Agreement, as this would further consolidate and boost the relations between the two countries,” Mr Lamuwa said.
In her remarks, Vice-Minister for Foreign Trade of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, who led the Dutch Delegation to the meeting, Ms. Hanneke Schuiling, said the Consultation was apt as it opens opportunity to modernize the Bilateral Investment Treaty between both countries, adding that a reformed treaty will help to further strengthen investment relations.
“Our economies are strongly connected through a multitude of trade and investment relations. These relations are strong and often go back many years. Several Dutch companies are a household name in Nigeria and are a source of employment and income together with their Nigerian partners. The strength of our economic relations is also clear when we look at our trade statistics; the Netherlands continues to be one of Nigeria’s five most important trading partners.
“I am pleased that we are now starting the renegotiation of the existing bilateral investment treaty as a means to further strengthen mutual economic interest and opportunities. As you may be aware, the current treaty was signed in 1992. Since then, both countries have experienced significant changes in their approach to international investments, which can be adopted into a new treaty.
“It is important to modernize our treaty to reflect these changes. A modernized treaty can also foster stronger economic relations between our two nations,” she said.
Ms. Schuiling said that updating and modernizing the investment agreement between both countries will create a more stable and predictable investment environment.
On his part, the Director-General of Nigeria Maritime and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Bashir Jamoh, said the agency will partner with the Kingdom of Netherlands as a maritime nation to develop Nigeria’s blue economy to become the nation’s main source of revenue.
“What we are advocating now is the issue of the blue economy, and already, the federal government has inaugurated a committee to look into ways of harnessing our blue economy.
“The Netherlands having been a maritime nation, they owe it a duty to join hands together and see how we can continue to build and expand our own fleets, the ships, small ships, the fishing trollers, passenger ferries, instead of using small canoes that every day we record accidents.
“We are doing what we can explore from the over 2.5 trillion dollars’ worth of ocean resources,” Mr Jamoh said.
The Consultation meeting had many Federal Government Agencies in attendance which Includes: the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP), National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Raw Materials Research and Development Council, Nigerian Data Protection Bureau (NDPB) among others.
