The Japanese Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Matsunaga Kazuyoshi has stated that the total trade volume between Nigeria and Japan is $1 billion annually. He added that Japan is also committed to the safety and stability of the Gulf of Guinea to improve maritime trade in Nigeria and West Africa.
The ambassador disclosed this on Monday at the inauguration ceremony of a two-week anti-piracy first course organised by the Martin Luther Agwai International Leadership and Peacekeeping Centre (MLAILPKC) in Jaji, Kaduna.
The anti-piracy course is a collaboration between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Japanese Government.
What the Japanese ambassador said
The Japanese ambassador also revealed that the Japanese government is willing to boost trade volumes between both nations, citing the need for more bilateral trade between the two countries and also enhance economic growth of Nigeria to address unemployment and poverty.
“The Government of Japan feels the necessity to promote the fishing industry in the southern states of Nigeria.
”Japan and Nigeria are far apart, but we are connected by sea.
”’Therefore, as a true friend of Nigeria, it can be said that Nigeria’s matter is Japan’s matter,” Kazuyoshi said.
He revealed that lack of employment opportunities had led to the widespread practice of taking crime as a means of livelihood, which he said could only be curbed through eradication of poverty.
“Ensuring maritime safety in the Gulf of Guinea, a key trade hub in West Africa, is needed to promote bilateral trade.
”The Japanese government is committed to contributing to the security of West Africa and protect people’s lives through a variety of measures including capacity building for personnel in charge of maritime safety.
“This project is one of Japan’s contributions towards capacity building. We hope that the training will improve the safety of the Gulf of Guinea through the knowledge the 30 participants will acquire,” he said.
He stated that the project falls under the category of “Support for stabilization of regions facing conflicts” which is one of the 3 main areas of Japan’s New Approach to Peace and Stability in Africa (NAPSA) initiatives announced in 2019.
He added that Japan in cooperation with other countries, is committed to the peace and stability of the Gulf of Guinea for the livelihood of the Nigerian people and for regional economic stability.
What you should know
- Recall Nairametrics reported in September that Nigeria extended its negative trade balance in the first half of 2021, as its trade deficit surged to N5.81 trillion in the period. This is according to the recently released foreign trade report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
- The report showed that Nigeria exported total merchandise valued at N7.99 trillion in the review period, opposed to a total import value of N13.8 trillion, indicating a trade balance of -N5.81 trillion between January and June 2021.
- This comes on the back of recurrent trade deficits recorded in previous periods, that is, N2.25 trillion in H1 2020 and N5.12 trillion in H2 2020. However, this is by far the highest trade deficit recorded by Nigeria in any half-year period.