The Consul General of Nigeria to South Africa, Abdulmalik Ahmed, has called upon Nigerian corporate entities to take advantage of the huge investment opportunities in South Africa.
The call is coming as Air Peace on Thursday operated its inaugural flight from Lagos to South Africa.
“I will like to take this opportunity to call upon Nigerian corporate entities to follow the lead of Air Peace and take advantage of the huge investment opportunities in South Africa,” Ahmed said at a press conference which took place on Friday in Johannesburg.
“The death of Nigerian corporate entities here compared to a large number of South Africa entities in Nigeria does not reflect the spirit of industry of our people. An increase in corporate presence could be a weapon in the fight against xenophobia. We at the consulate are ever ready to facilitate the processes of your arrival,” he said.
Read Also: AirPeace begins flights to Makurdi December 7, resumes Uyo flights
Ahmed said South Africa has remained Nigeria’s biggest partner over the years, adding that Nigeria’s yearly exports to South Africa are in excess of $3.8bn.
“South Africa is Nigeria’s biggest trading partner in Africa,” Ahmed said.
“Though dominated by oil, Nigeria’s export to South Africa is in excess of $3.8bn annually. That represents about 6.3 percent of the country’s total exports. Similarly, South Africa exported goods of about $4.9bn in 2018 to Nigeria,” he said.
Speaking about the economic benefit of the flight, the Nigerian envoy noted that route launch will help improve foreign inflows and encourage investment.
“Nigeria provides a favourable business environment and large market for a wide range of South Africa companies including MTN, Multichoice, Shoprite, Protea hotels and more,” Ahmed said.
“The Lagos-Johannesburg route was serviced by Air Arik and South African Airways but unfortunately, both airlines could not sustain operations on the routes. It is against this background that Air Peace is entering the market,” he said.
Fundi Sithe, chief operating officer, Airports Company, South Africa, commended AirPeace for flying into their flagship airport, Oliver Tambo International Airport.
She noted that the number of passengers on the return trip showed that the route was much awaited.
“Yesterday, we saw that the inaugural flight arrive at Oliver Tambo International Airport, December 17 on-time. It arrived with 85 passengers on board and departed later on with an estimated 207 passengers. That is quite significant because the difference tells us that there is a level of demand that has not been serviced,” Sithe said.
