TUE APRIL 15 2025-theGBJournal| Indian Consul General in Lagos, Chandramaouli Kumar Kern, said Monday that he has advised the business delegation from the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) to focus on building long-standing relationships by considering the establishment of their manufacturing businesses in Lagos.
According to the Consul General ”We have come to understand how we can collaborate with the State to enhance business prospects, and instead of coming and going for trade activities, I will also advise the CII to send the prospectus for training for review and alignment with the State’s plan towards capacity building of MSMES.”
Kumar Kern made the comments when the CII delegation alongside the Second Secretary (Commerce), Abuja, Pranay Sinha was hosted by the Lagos State Government Monday.
Second Secretary Sinha, equally acknowledged the Lagos State Government for being hospitable and for hosting the largest concentration of Indians in Nigeria.
“The Confederation of Indian Industries is a major investment promotion organisation in India, and the delegation comprised investors from medical, technology, manufacturing and other sectors.
I must also mention that India has an all-expense-paid training programme (covering visa, accommodation, flight ticket) to accommodate 250 Nigerians, and Lagos State should take advantage of it because it runs on a first-come-first-served basis,” he said.
African Director, CII, Aditya Ghosh, stated that the organisation is not just a business association but also a development agency running centres of excellence that promote investment and trade.
“Nigeria is a country that many Indians look forward to investing in, but the challenges include adequate labour and skilled professionals to meet the needs of the businesses.
CII has worked to grow and stabilise many MSMEs in India, and we want to work closely with Lagos to ensure local MSMEs grow and are integrated into the global value chain in the area of agriculture, tech startup and others,” he said.
The Indian Consul General in Lagos, had described the visit as exploratory, as some members of the team were in Nigeria for the first time.
Earlier in her remarks, the Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment (CCTI), Folashade Ambrose noted that Nigeria and India have a lot in common, describing the business visit as timely.
“The essence of continuous engagement with investors is to promote focal sectors that the State government has identified with projects listed for potential investments.
These include rail transportation, development of Lagos State Medical Industrial Zone with focus on health, biotechnology and others, development of Omu Creek, finance and technical expertise in the operation of cyber security and knowledge information technology entrepreneurship, including expansion of the real estate sector, amongst others,” she said.
Ambrose said that the Ministry’s strategy is driving economic prosperity and growth, focusing on trade, and strengthening the organised private sector through the development of the industrial sector, along with the NANOs and informal sector, in line with 30-year Lagos State Development Plan (LSDP) 1952 and T.H.E.M.E.S Plus Development Agenda that guide the administration’s policies, programmes and projects towards achieving a greater Lagos.
“One of the things the State is doing to enable business is building massive infrastructure.
We have projects like the Light Industrial Estate, Imota, which we are developing into a complete business zone. There are abundant opportunities at the Lekki Economic Zone to be explored. We are also working with Federal agencies to harmonise our positions relating to removing barriers to trade and investments.
We have concluded plans to train hundreds of MSMEs in export readiness, and we invite CII to partner with us to achieve this.
“We can have conversations around these opportunities and facilitate engagement with specific ministries in charge of the projects or sectors in which you are interested. Your team is in the right place as Africa is the next frontier for development, and Lagos is a leading player across sectors,” she said.
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