Managing Director/Chief Executive of NEPZA, Dr. Olufemi Ogunyemi, in a warm handshake with the European Union Ambassador, Mr. Gautier Mignot, during the meeting at the European House on Monday in Abuja.
By Felix Khanoba
The Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) has urged the European Union (EU) to plug into Nigeria’s Special Economic Zones (SEZs) as part of efforts to drive industrialisation, economic expansion, and shared prosperity.
The Managing Director of NEPZA, Dr. Olufemi Ogunyemi, made the appeal on Monday at a trade and investment facilitation meeting held at the European House in Abuja.
According to a statement issued by the Head of Corporate Communications at NEPZA, Dr. Martins Odeh, Ogunyemi told participants that : “It is a privilege to address this distinguished gathering at this critical moment in global economic history. Our discussion today examines how Nigeria’s Free Zones, under NEPZA’s strategic framework, can serve as effective platforms to enhance EU–Nigeria economic cooperation amid significant structural change.
“As the global order shifts from a predictable, rules-based system to one shaped by shifting alliances and economic pressures, the European Union should increasingly leverage Nigeria’s Special Economic Zones to expand and deepen our existing economic partnership.
“We recognise how the EU leaders have articulated a vision of European independence and economic strength rooted in diversified, resilient, and strategically aligned partnerships rather than reliance on a narrow set of global suppliers or geopolitical arrangements.”
He noted that greater European economic activity along Nigeria’s Special Economic Zones corridors would help reduce overdependence on limited markets, protect essential supply chains, and increase economic engagement across fast-growing parts of West Africa.
Ogunyemi also observed that the EU’s recent economic realignment efforts highlighted the need for member states to pursue mutually beneficial partnerships around shared priorities between Europe and Africa, adding that exploring opportunities within Special Economic Zones could unlock common economic gains.
He explained that: “Even as we acknowledge that the European Union is Africa’s leading partner in trade and investment, with trade in goods between the two continents amounting to nearly €355 billion in 2024, and trade in services exceeding €100 billion, the persistence of a trade structure dominated by Africa’s raw material exports presented a shared strategic challenge .”
The NEPZA boss noted that: “overreliance on primary commodities without meaningful value addition hinders industrial growth, limits human capital development, and threatens the long-term sustainability of supply chains between us and the EU, adding that investing in the country’s economic zones could help address these imbalances.’’
The meeting was attended by ambassadors from European countries, heads of delegation of European Union member states, as well as representatives of the European Commission and the European External Action Service.
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