The Special Envoy of the President of the Republic of Korea, Jang Sungmin has said that his country is looking at expanding the bilateral and economic cooperation between Korea and Nigeria.
He stated that Korea was very interested in engendering technology transfer between the two countries especially in agriculture, cyberspace, security, biotechnology, oil and gas, principally oil refining capacity.
He said Korea believes that Nigeria has the natural resources to be an economic powerhouse.
Sungmin spoke with reporters during his recent visit to Nigeria on behalf of the President of the Republic of Korea, Yoon Suk Yeol.
The envoy hailed steps taken so far by President Bola Tinubu to reshape the economy.
He said: “The Korean government is committed to economic cooperation with Nigeria, as Nigeria is the gateway to Africa. Nigeria has the biggest market in Africa; the largest natural resources and arable land in Africa, all criteria for economic power in Africa.
“President Yeol believes that by discovering avenues for further economic cooperation will lead to economic prosperity for Nigeria and faster economic development for Nigeria.
“Everything needed to be an economic powerhouse is here in Nigeria. Korea is a country that has the technological know-how and economic prosperity to lead the fourth industrial revolution. Korea is already leading that revolution.
“The new Nigerian President, Bola Tinubu is opening up the country for business and we can use that to expand our cooperation for the benefit of the two countries. Although cooperation already exists between the two countries, we want to make it much more organised in terms of youth empowerment and training.”
He assured that Korea would continue to provide development assistance to Nigeria and other countries with which it shared common values.
Vice President of SK, Korea’s second-largest conglomerate worth over $150 billion, Guillame Barthe-Dejean, said that with the COVID-19 pandemic disruption of global supply chains, many companies, South Korean companies inclusive, were seeking ways to fill up the gaps.
Nigeria, he said, possesses the natural resources that will fuel and power the fourth industrial revolution.
Barthe-Dejean said investments from Korea to Nigeria and other parts of Africa were targeting improving the livelihood and overall well-being of the people in the areas of job creation and general economic stabilisation.
He said: “Our intention is to invest in large scale capital projects that span decades. Korean companies not only fund projects but support the entire life cycles of projects – which translates to employment and technological transfers.
“Korean companies will be increasingly interested in partnering with countries in Africa to stabilize these supply chains to ensure they are more resilient. This will take the form of off take agreements or investments, or greater collaboration and partnership with African countries. We hope this is the case with Nigeria.”
