The governments of Turkey and Nigeria have disclosed that bilateral trade between the two countries is expected to hit $560 billion within a few short years.
The Turkish Deputy Minister of Economy, Mustafa Server made the disclosure at the ongoing ECOWAS-Turkish export fair ongoing at the Eko Hotel in Lagos.
He said Turkey would contribute $390 billion to the projected trade volume, whilst Nigeria would contribute $170 billion. Turkey is the 18th largest economy in the world with a GDP of $800 billion.
Server said, “We are very optimistic about the partnership with Nigeria and ECOWAS. Both countries are centres of attraction for investment at the moment; Nigeria is one of the top rising economies in Africa. Nigeria is taking confident steps towards achieving its goal of becoming one of the top 20 economies of the world by the year 2020 and Turkey is targeting rising to the top 10 economies of the world by the year 2023.
“We will be ready to provide all the necessary support needed to help both countries achieve their economic and trade targets. For example, we are working on the elimination of visa requirements between the two countries to enhance the mobility of investments as well as human and material capital between the two countries,” he added.
The National President, Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Dr. Herbert Ajayi, in his remark said in the recent past, the trade volume between Turkey and Nigeria has tremendously improved, maintaining that as at 2012, the trade volume between the two countries rose beyond $1.3 billion.