The British high commissioner to Nigeria, Richard Montgomery, has noted that Tinubu’s significant economic initiatives are attracting international attention. On Wednesday, Montgomery made these remarks at a meeting with Vice President Kashim Shettima at the Abuja presidential villa. Recent changes undertaken by Tinubu in the oil and gas and finance sectors are seen as crucial to navigating the country’s economy away from the predicament. On May 29th, the president abruptly ended the country’s petrol subsidy, which caused widespread concern. The foreign exchange markets were unified, and limitations on domiciliary accounts were loosened shortly after.
In this regard, notable figures from all around the world have commended the policies; this includes David Malpass, a former president of the World Bank, who has stated that the reforms are essential for reducing instances of corruption. In a similar vein, Montgomery believes that the elimination of subsidies and the implementation of exchange rate changes would result in improved investment prospects for the nation. According to the UK envoy, the significant economic decisions being made by this government are extremely important and are getting the attention of people all across the world.
Subsidy removal and exchange rate reform will transform the economy.
Investment prospects have greatly improved as a result of subsidy elimination and exchange rate reform. He stated that they are aware that inflation and unemployment are making conditions difficult. The vice president discussed potential countermeasures to ease the effects of the current economic climate. However, they believe that the most important thing is that these changes put Nigeria on a more prosperous path; they will attract more investments, and both the United Kingdom and the city of London regard Nigeria as an enormous possibility moving forward.
Also, he stated that the UK and Nigeria had formed collaborations in a variety of fields that are of mutual interest. According to the ambassador, they talked about the long-standing connection that exists. There are many things they have in common, he said, and they have a solid track record of working together on development projects. There have been some very fruitful agreements regarding trade and investment, and they have also been involved in some productive collaboration regarding matters of security and defense.
325,000 of the UK visas issued were between Nigeria.
On the new British policy regarding student visas, he stated that three million visas were issued by the UK in 2022. However, 325,000 of the visas issued were between Nigeria and the UK, and he also noted that many other nations experienced the restriction on bringing dependents. According to him, Nigerians make up more than 10% of all foreign visitors in London and the UK. The number of Nigerian students studying in the UK has surged by a factor of five in the past three years.
They are delighted that so many Nigerians are choosing to study in the UK, seeing it as a great success story for their universities. There are two issues in his consideration: the first is that it’s not always easy to obtain housing services that can accommodate their entire current student population. Second, he believes that most people understand the need to control the flow of people into and out of the country in the same way as the government of Nigeria controls entry and exit at its borders.
A collaborative effort will be channeled into the country’s development.
Following discussions, he has also had beneficial conversations with Nigeria about home affairs and justice, and they have strong ties of personal contact, which indicates well for educational exchanges. Several topics related to the enhancement of the future relationship were also explored. As he and the vice president spoke, he believes there is good potential to do more in terms of economic interaction. To foster more commerce and investment, he stated he would be doing what he could.
Related Link
Wikipedia: Website
Snopes.com
