Director-General of the Franco-Nigerian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), Moses Umoru, has revealed that the quantum of investment from companies from France or affiliated with France has increased in the post-pandemic era beyond 4 billion Euros even as French companies with a presence in Nigeria are now more than a hundred.
Umoru disclosed this at a recent French Week Globally event held at the Alliance Francaise in Lagos, which was graced by dignitaries and leaders of French agencies. The event also featured a job fair for prospective students who want to study in France at a relatively affordable cost.
The DG noted that over a hundred French companies were actively present in Nigeria, contributing to the socio-economic sector of the African giant nation creating opportunities for businesses to grow.
Umoru pointed out that the Franco-Nigerian Chamber has and continues to support the growth of French-Nigeria business relations, just as he stated that the high-impact initiatives of FNCCI had yielded gains and this included trade missions to France, high-level networking events, meetings with key government agencies and support for the Chamber’s start-ups.
“The FNCCI has been at the vanguard of improving business relations and trade between French organisations and Nigerian business owners. Before the pandemic in 2019, the trade between Nigeria and France was about four billion euros. Though it shrank due to the impact of COVID-19 just like every other nation, it has gone beyond these statistics now If you look at the configuration of the French Embassy in Nigeria, the Chamber of Commerce supports it and also initiates funding for impact projects in Nigeria.
“That is where we are right now. There is a campus in France that promotes French education abroad and there is a contract department of the embassy. We are all working together to promote France-Nigerian business relationships. There is a job fair, conferences, and workshops and we are talking to Nigerians who will be interviewed and will have job placements at this event titled ‘Working with France and in French, a springboard to success,” he added.
Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade, Economic Attractiveness, and French Nationals Abroad, Olivier Becht noted that this year’s significant celebration was held under the ‘Choose France’ communication campaign, aimed at improving bilateral trade and economic ties between both countries which have significantly grown over the years.
Becht added that Nigeria is France’s first trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa, accounting for over twenty percent of France’s trade with the region, and remains among top investors to Nigeria, with over $10 billion in investment stocks.
Head of the French agency, Campus France, Sebastien Bede, in charge of higher education and scientific cooperation, stated that there are over a thousand students who have enjoyed the services of Campus France and schooling in France.
He added that the organisation had made it convenient even for Nigerian students who cannot speak the French language to enroll in institutions in France and still achieve their objectives.
Bede noted that France is a destination willing to attract more Nigerians and efforts have been made to foster a friendly learning environment for more Nigerian scholars to study in France while establishing a better relationship with Nigeria.
“We want to build a long-term relationship and promote research and research centres. We are building a strong relationship between the two countries through education and want prospective students to know that institutions in France are better placed and guarantee affordable learning with different options and even for those who cannot speak the French language,” Bede said.
Meanwhile, the president of the MAAUN Group of Universities, Professor Adamu Gwarzo, encouraged Nigerians to learn the French language as a second lingual franca, as it is an added value.
The don noted that if one must make headway in other parts of the world, it was important to be bilingual, studying the French language as Nigeria is surrounded by French-speaking countries, and adopting the language would improve trade.
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