French government  to support start-ups, SMEs in Nigeria, others with €3.5bn initiative. 

The French government has said  that it  opens the “Choose Africa” conference, a €3.5 billion initiative by President Emmanuel Macron dedicated to supporting the development of start-ups and SMEs in Africa to enable the continent to benefit fully from the opportunities of the digital revolution. It also  said that Nigeria is the first in sub-Saharan Africa with bilateral trade amounting to a total of $4.5 billion in 2019, $2.3 billion in 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This fact is contained in a statement made available to journalists announcing a two day visit of Mr Franck RIESTER, French Minister in charge of Foreign Trade and Attractiveness in Abuja,

According to the statement, “As the largest economy in Africa and the economic engine of West Africa, Nigeria is indeed a major partner for France, the first in sub-Saharan Africa with bilateral trade amounting to a total of $4.5 billion in 2019 $2.3 billion in 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Minister will have several official engagements in Abuja and Lagos, in order to underline the importance of the bilateral economic relationship and to prepare the Summit on the financing of African economies in Paris on 18 May. 

The objective of the mission is also to further strengthen the links between the French and Nigerian private sectors. In this regard, the Minister will have in-depth discussions with the main Nigerian economic actors to strengthen bilateral cooperation and investments, both in Nigeria and in France, particularly in the logistics sector. He will meet with young Nigerian entrepreneurs in the cultural and creative industries sector, to discuss the major role of their country in African creativity and the development of the African entrepreneurial ecosystem, with the support of France.