Though President Barack Obama has refused to visit Nigeria, in his second official trip to the African continent, it seems Nigerians are not even concerned about such a visit. Meanwhile, China is undoubtedly a very important country and the largest market in the world with its teeming population of 1.35 billion people. She is also the world’s largest creditor nation and largest importer and exporter of goods and is the second largest importer of Nigerian crude oil. Over the past 42 years, the ties have grown so much that Nigeria is now the third largest trade partner of China in Africa, with trade volume increasing significantly to $10.57 billion in 2012.
President Goodluck Jonathan’s visit to China is at the invitation of the Chinese President, Xi Jinping. During the course of the visit, Jonathan has met with top Chinese leaders, including heads of private companies. The two parties exchanged views on bilateral relations as well as international and regional issues of common concerns, considered new channels and approaches to boost Sino-Nigerian cooperation in political, economic, cultural and other fields and also signed documents of cooperation.
Formal Sino-Nigerian diplomatic relations was established on February 10, 1971 and it grew closer as a result of the international isolation and Western condemnation of Nigeria’s military regime, most especially during General Sani Abacha’s regime. From the start, both sides have endeavoured to promote communication and cooperation. Over the years, Nigeria has since become an important source of crude oil for China’s rapidly growing economy. Meanwhile, China has continued to provide extensive economic, military and political support to the country over the years. In 2005, the relationship was upgraded to a strategic partnership, which has strengthened economic ties, especially in the areas of communication and cultural exchanges.
Beyond economic ties, cooperation in science and technology has made Nigeria the first African country that boasts of satellite navigation capacity, the NigComSat-1, to expand cellular, broadcast and internet networks. The Chinese also supplies arms, equipment and training to Nigerian Armed Forces even in the face of the reluctance of some Western power.
The Chinese ambassador to Nigeria, Deng Boqing, believes Jonathan’s visit will further consolidate the traditional friendship between China and Nigeria, enhance strategic mutual trust, expand pragmatic bilateral cooperation and promote the further development of China-ECOWAS and China-Africa relations, considering Nigeria is an important factor in both.
China’s interest in Africa has grown considerably in recent years, which is evident in the number of Chinese corporations that are operating in the continent and Nigeria in particular. Thus, Jonathan’s visit is to cement a long term sustainable relationship and encourage China to invest more in Nigeria.
It is well known that Jonathan is making attempts to diversify Nigeria’s economy and reduce reliance on black gold by improving and expanding Nigeria’s agricultural base in order to reduce importation of food and increase exportation, thereby making Nigeria self-reliant when it comes to feeding her people. The Chinese have shown keen interest in Jonathan’s determination to diversify the nation’s economy by supporting her agricultural programme.
During the course of the trip, there have been agreements and Memorandums of Understanding signed in different areas, including power, construction, infrastructure, communications and telephony. The visit provided an opportunity to finalize $1.1 billion loan with low interest for the much needed infrastructural development from airports and roads to a hydro-power plant. The loans were part of the $3 billion approved by China at interest rates less than three per cent.
However, the “flooding” of Nigerian market with cheap Chinese goods, combined with the importation of second-hand European products, has adversely affected domestic industries, especially textiles mills, and laying off of workers over the course of a decade. Also, the influx of fake and sub-standard goods from China is also a cause for worry but the Chinese Government, according to the ambassador to Nigeria, is putting measures in place to curtail this development.
The visit, apparently, is a sign of better things to come for Nigeria, but that is if and only IF the Nigerian Government is sincere and transparent in the use of the funds for the purpose they are meant for and any agreement signed must be of benefits to Nigeria and not a sell-out. Furthermore, it is beyond securing loans to actually ensuring that these loans bring the much needed and expected development to the country. The onus is on the President to make sure they are not frittered away through corruption.
Development in Nigeria will see us relying less and less on foreign aids and loans and needing to kowtow to other countries, hat in hand, begging for crumbs, and subjecting ourselves to the whims and caprices of these superpowers. If they didn’t take determined steps to develop their countries, how would we be able to ask them for help? We need to get our priorities right and put our house in order and hopefully the common Nigerian will feel the impact of these new set of “alms” and hopefully the loans do not become an albatross around the neck of Nigerians.
Adewumi Adedoyin, who lives in Kubwa, Abuja, wrote from Ladyznigh0589@yahoo.com.
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