Nigeria, Canada to revive bilateral agreement

Nigeria, Canada to revive bilateral agreement
Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Philip Baker (left) and the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah, when the envoy visited the minister in Abuja on Wednesday. PHOTO CREDIT: SHIPS & PORTS

Nigeria and Canada have commenced moves to revive their bilateral agreement.

The new Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Philip Baker, disclosed this when he visited the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah, in Abuja. 

Baker said his country is ready to collaborate with Nigeria in areas like mining and aviation.

He said he has been tasked to increase trade between the two countries as a means of building future relationships.

Both countries had signed a foreign investment promotion and protection agreement (FIPPA) in May 2014, which Canada ratified in 2014.

Nigeria decided not to ratify the agreement because it was later found unbalanced and not consistent with Nigeria’s 2016 Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) model.

Nigeria has therefore requested for the amendment or renegotiation of the agreement.

Welcoming the Canadian top diplomat, Enelamah said he believed that his African experience will be useful during his work in Nigeria. He appreciated the relationship between the two countries and said they must make it count.  



Copyright Ships & Ports Ltd. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit given to www.shipsandports.com.ng as the source.