AIM ia an established platform where countries, cities, and municipalities attract higher inflow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by featuring investment destinations at their locations. The AIM meeting is being organised by the UAE Ministry of Economy and is scheduled for March 29 and 31, 2022.
The executive director in charge of strategy at the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) secretariat in Abuja, Abdullateef Shittu, said that the gathering will provide delegates of the 14 Nigerian states opportunities and ideal channels to share and promote investment opportunities in their respective states; Premium Times reports.
The Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF), an association of the 36 Nigerian governors, has been working with the UAE Embassy in Nigeria to ease participation at the forum by Nigerian states.
Mr Shittu said the delegations from the participating states will promote Nigeria as an attractive investment and trade destination, showcase existing investment opportunities and provide leads that can be converted to investments.
Details obtained by newsmen listed the states that will be wooing investors at the forum to include Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Cross River, Edo and Ekiti, Enugu, Kwara, Niger, Ondo, Plateau, Sokoto and Yobe.
Delegates of the aforementioned participating states, some to be led by their governors, will be convincing potential UAE investors to invest in key and capital-intensive projects across sectors — infrastructure development, manufacturing, agriculture, energy, technology, transportation and logistics, tourism and hospitality, education and finance.
For instance, Abia State will be seeking $1 billion (N416.25 billion by the current official market dollar-naira exchange rate) for Enyimba economic city development ($288 million), leather and garment city project ($300 million) and Abia State special agro-processing zone development project ($450 million).
Similarly, Akwa Ibom will try to convince potential investors at the meeting to put up a total of $2.6 billion in the Ibom Deep Seaport, Ibom Industrial City project, Ibom Science Park and Industrial City. Ibom, the agribusiness and the construction of pier infrastructures in the state.
The states of Bauchi, Bayelsa, Cross River, Edo, Ekiti and Enugu will seek US$88 million, US$2.3 billion, US$3.5 billion, US$1.1 billion, US$104.5 million and US$160 million, respectively, for maritime projects, agriculture and infrastructure development in all states.
In addition, the state governments of Kwara, Niger, Ondo, Plateau, Sokoto and Yobe will advise potential investors to consider contributing US$97 million, US$184 million, US$2.5 billion, US$33 million, US$388 million dollars and 910 million dollars, respectively, for the execution of projects in the agriculture, hotel, infrastructure and mining sectors in their respective states.
At least 74 potential UAE investors have signified intentions to engage with the delegations from the 14 Nigerian states, Mr Shittu of the NGF said.
They include the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development, African Development Bank, National Marine Dredging Company, Islamic Development Bank, Al Ain Farms, Strata manufacturing, TVM Capital Healthcare, Amea Power, MENA Infrastructure, Dubai Investments, Investment Corporation of Dubai, Mubadala, Gazprom Bank, Jumeirah Group, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Group, the Saudi Fund for Development, VTB Capital, MENA Tech Fund, among others.
Organisers say delegates of the Nigerian states would be allotted time to make presentations to investors.
