Indian envoy hails Lagos free zone

The Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr Abhay Thakur, recently visited the Lagos Free Zone (LFZ) with a corporate delegation.

According to the envoy, the LFZ provides a unique and special ecosystem that all Indian companies with growth aspirations must seriously consider for their businesses.

The High Commissioner gave this advice when he led a cross-section of top executives of Indian companies operating in Nigeria to visit the LFZ, an industrial zone developed by Tolaram Group.

Thakur described the LFZ, especially with its integration of the Lekki Deep Sea Port, as a defining project for Nigeria that would impact the economy positively and further open the country to the world as a preferred destination for foreign direct investment (FDI).

“I have been very impressed with the scale, size and potential of the LFZ project that I have seen here today and I commend Tolaram Group for having put together such a defining Project in Nigeria. “I would urge all the Indian companies globally to seriously consider the possibilities at the LFZ because it is difficult to find a better investment destination in Nigeria today,” he said.

He assured the LFZ team that the Indian High Commission in Nigeria would do all within its means to help promote and attract the much-needed investment into Nigeria.

“As you may already be aware, Nigeria remains the largest trading partner of India in Africa with a total trade volume of about $14 billion in 2020 and is also one of the leading investors in Nigeria with a cumulative investment base of about $20 billion in Nigeria.

“We are trying to play a bigger role in Nigeria’s growth story by creating a win-win relationship. In this context, LFZ has a special place in furthering India-Nigeria collaboration,” he added.

Addressing the High Commissioner and his entourage on the visit, the Managing Director, LFZ, Mr Dinesh Rathi, disclosed that the first phase of the project, which represents about 45 per cent of the 830 Hectare area would be completed by the year 2022 with the delivery of critical infrastructures such as the Lekki Deep Sea Port, the piped gas distribution network, completion of the ready-built industrial and residential buildings and take-off of the Industrial Training Centre.