As part of Government efforts to attract direct foreign investment into the country, and consequent upon the signing of the Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (IPPA) in Vienna, Austria between Nigeria and Austria (8 April, 2013), the Nigerian Embassy in Vienna will, in collaboration with the relevant Nigerian government MDAs and the Austrian Federal Chamber of Commerce, organize a Business/Investment Forum in Vienna on 26 to 28 June. A one day forum will equally be organised in collaboration with the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency (SARIO) in Bratislava, Slovakia .
The Business/Investment Forum will provide the much needed impetus for a renewed and sustainable re-engagement between the Organized Private Sectors of Nigeria and Austria and open the chapter of economic relations between Nigeria and Slovakia.
Austria boasts of a well-developed market economy and a skilled labour force. The Austrian economy features a large service sector, a sound industrial sector, a highly developed agricultural sector, and a well-developed tourism sector which derives from a conserved culture. These features place Austria among the 12 richest countries in the world in terms of GDP per capita. In spite of the current crises in Eurozone, the country has maintained an economic growth of about 3.3 percent and an unemployment rate of less than 4 percent, thereby making it a model among EU countries. The IPPA signed constitutes a platform for increasing Nigeria/Austria trade relations to our mutual benefit in almost every known sector, be it manufacturing, cottage industries, information technology, petrochemical, medical, tourism, lumber and wood processing, agriculture, agro-industry, food processing, power, renewable energy, textiles, water management, sanitation, construction, transportation, housing, oil and gas, etc.
For its part, Slovakia, which is only 45 minutes drive away from the Austrian capital of Vienna, has one of the EU member states? highest GDP growth in 2012. Slovakia itself offers a haven for foreign investors, having undergone major privatization since its separation from the Czech Republic 20 years ago. Slovakia enjoys an inflow of FDI which has transformed the country into the manufacturing house of Europe, offering cheaper labour and better priced goods in every sector. The Slovak Government is also eager to increase trade relations with Nigeria and to create an opportunity for meaningful interaction between Nigerian and Slovak Private Sector Operators. Indeed the Embassy of Nigeria has been inundated with inquiries from Slovakia about investment opportunities in Nigeria in the wake of the Eurozone crisis.
On the Nigerian side, the Business/Investment Forum is designed to attract representations from the following sectors : the Federal Ministries of Petroleum Resources, Agriculture, Solid Minerals Development, Tourism (including Nigeria Tourism Development Council (NTDC), Banks involved in Industrial and Agricultural Development in Nigerian Export Promotion Council (EPC), Raw Materials Development Council (RMDC), Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) and Key Nigerian Business Entrepreneurs and State Governments.
Austrian Businessmen/Investors from the Federal Chamber of Commerce and Chambers of Commerce of all Nine (9) Provinces/States in Austria will be paired with their Nigerian counterparts during the Forum. With the help of the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency (SARIO), pairing of Nigerian businesses with Slovak ones will also be effected.
Interested Nigerian businessmen, investors and other prospective participants at the forum are advised to contact the African Leadership magazine being consultants to the forum for registration and co-ordination processes (contact person: Ken Giami,editor@africanleadershipmagazine.com, +234 803 792 0639). Interested participants should also note that the deadline for registration for the forum is May 19, 2013." Click here for more information.