Oluchi Chibuzor
Lagos Free Zone, has called for a shift from trading with Nigeria to manufacturing in Nigeria, urging Indian businesses to deepen their investments in local manufacturing and develop export-oriented value chains that can serve Nigeria, the wider African market, and global destinations.
The call was made by the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Lagos Free Zone, Adesuwa Ladoja, at the Nigeria-India Export Summit, themed, “Driving Sustainable Export Growth through Trade, Investment and Market Access between Nigeria and India,” held in Lagos.
Delivering her keynote address, Ladoja stated that the longstanding relationship between Nigeria and India provided a strong foundation for a new phase of economic cooperation, with investment, manufacturing, and value addition playing a greater role in future trade.
She noted that while energy would remain an important part of the relationship, sustainable growth would require both countries to look beyond commodity exchange and build businesses that create products and value locally.
“For many businesses, the most important step is to move from selling in Nigeria to making in Nigeria. That shift is already underway, and this is where the next wave of value will come from. Investing here, building a strong local presence, and developing a supply chain that manages inputs and outputs locally is critical to sustainable success,” she said.
She explained that Nigeria’s market size, natural resources, and access to the wider African market, combined with India’s manufacturing and technological capabilities, presented opportunities to develop competitive production and export value chains.
She added that Lagos Free Zone provides an integrated platform with the infrastructure and connectivity to support manufacturing, trade, and exports, enabling businesses to create competitive products while retaining more value within Nigeria.
In his welcome address, the Host of the Nigeria-India Export Summit, Puneet Arora, explained that the summit provided an opportunity to strengthen commercial ties between Nigeria and India and to explore opportunities in trade, infrastructure, agriculture, market access, and investment. He noted that sustainable export growth would depend on stronger supply chains, investment, and lasting commercial relationships between businesses in both markets.