President Muhammadu Buhari, has on Friday, said that the competitiveness which Nigerians display abroad, is a result of the good education and great business skills they acquired in Nigeria, before travelling outside the country, Page 36 learnt.
President Buhari stated this when he met with the Minister of State, Foreign Affairs, of the United Arab Emirates, UAE, Shaikh Shakboot Alnahyan, at the sidelines of the Paris Peace Forum.
The Special Adviser to the President, on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, disclosed this in a statement titled: ‘Nigerians Competitive Both Home And Abroad, President Buhari Tells UAE Minister’.
The President was quoted to have said: “Nigerians are all over the place, very competitive. And the competitiveness starts from home, where they have acquired good education, gone into businesses, and then take all that abroad.”
The President encouraged Nigerians in Diaspora to “subject themselves to the rules and standards of the country in which they live, either as working class, or doing businesses”.
He welcomed the offer by the UAE to partner with Nigeria, in the areas of renewable energy, agriculture, infrastructure logistics, and provision of vaccines, to further control the Covid-19 pandemic.
On his own part, Minister Alnahyan said that his country “thinks very highly“ of President Buhari’s leadership, noting that, he is striving to “build a better future for generations to come”.
He stated also that there are lots of Nigerians in his country “who add much value”, assuring that the headwinds of the recent past in the relationship “are now behind us”.
His words: “We want to secure, deepen, and strengthen the association for the future. We have a lot in common. We may be taking small steps, but they are leading somewhere.”
On proposed investments in Nigeria, Alnahyan said that it would be a win-win situation, “which would bring hope and opportunities for people in both countries. We want to come and add quality and value”.
Adesina added that the Minister equally commended the Nigerian government for its robust tackling of violent extremism.
More news later…