daniel chigunwe
ABUJA. – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said he could not run away from the “maze of challenges and difficulties” of doing business in Nigeria in his high-level talks with his counterpart President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday.
Speaking to South African businesspeople in Abuja, Mr Ramaphosa acknowledged that the difficulties experienced were regulatory as well as arbitrary.
“This is what we’re going to address. We cannot run away from it,” he said.
Mr Ramaphosa is leading a South African delegation of ministers and businesspeople to four West African nations, starting in Nigeria.
“We agreed as two countries that we will improve and create an environment for businesses to operate,” Mr Ramaphosa said.
He added: “The good thing is that President Buhari and myself and his ministers are determined to improve the relationship between South Africa and Nigeria and do so at a very high and close level. There exists now a very warm and conducive and productive and make it profitable relationship between the two countries.”
Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel told a Nigeria-South Africa business forum they acknowledged that there were restrictions in business between the two countries.
South African High Commissioner to Nigeria, Thami Mseleku, said that South African businesses were exiting the Nigerian economy because of the hurdles imposed. He said South Africa wanted Nigeria to ease regulations and be consistent with its rules. – News24.com
Online Reporter