The Government of the Republic of Turkey has disclosed that three Turkish companies have invested about $272 million across Nigerian states, among other investments by companies of Turkish origin.
Turkish Deputy Ambassador to Nigeria, Elif Durdu, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.
The official added that Turkey is exploring ways to increase the Turkish-Nigeria trade volume to $5 billion.
The envoy added that it is working to scale up its current $40 billion volume of trade with Africa, and its $1 billion bilateral trade volume with Nigeria.
The envoy stressed that “Türkiye was exploring ways to increase the Turkish-Nigeria trade volume to five billion dollars.”
Turkey-Nigeria Trade
The Turkish envoy highlighted that many Turkish companies are already operating in Nigeria, fully engaged in multimillion-dollar businesses and projects.
- She highlighted three of those companies, which have invested $272 million :
“Hayat Kimya, a Turkish company operating in Ogun, had invested about $200 million in the production of chemical and hygienic products, toilet papers, and diapers.
“Ülker, another Turkish company, invested around $50 million in the production of biscuits and chocolates under the brand name, McVitie’s,” the envoy said.
“Direkçi, a Turkish trading company, also invested about $22 million in four Nigerian states: Jigawa, Niger, Kano, and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
“The main project areas of this company are farming, livestock, poultry, and soya beans production,” the official said, as quoted by NAN.
“In addition, large-scale Turkish construction companies, along with those active in the energy sector, are willing to take part in important infrastructure projects in Nigeria,” she added.
- The official explained that Turkey and Nigeria are significant players in their respective regions, but the current volume of trade between them does not reflect their potential.
- Durdu said the two countries could offer much more in terms of bilateral trade relations, but that could only be achieved by scaling up their trade ties.
- She added that Turkey is already deliberately putting in place measures that would attract massive Turkish investments to Nigeria and other African countries.
“Türkiye is striving to address this issue by increasing bilateral contacts, alongside attracting Turkish investments to Nigeria.
“Türkiye, through her Africa Partnership Policy, also aims to promote the trade volume with the African continent.
“This is around a total of $40 billion as of 2024, and Nigeria plays a special role in that goal,” she said.
- She stressed that the total cost of completed construction projects of various Turkish companies in Nigeria is about $2.8 billion.
What You Should Know
Recall that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in 2021, revealed that the volume of trade between Nigeria and Turkey would be expanded by $5 billion to boost socio-economic ties between the two countries.
Erdogan disclosed this in a press briefing after a closed-door bilateral meeting with former President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House, Abuja.
He stated that Turkey is willing to partner with Nigeria on security challenges and also expressed optimism that relations between Nigeria and Turkey will grow.
