Nigeria has agreed to strengthen its long-standing bilateral trade relations with Germany by improving on trade and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) development, the country’s  Industry, Trade and Investment Minister, Olusegun Aganga has said.

Aganga spoke after meeting with the German Ambassador to Nigeria, Dorothee Janetzke-Wenzkel, and the Country Director, German Cooperation (GIZ), Dr. Thomas Kirsch.

The meeting with the German Ambassador was focused on trade facilitation within the region, especially on how both economies can partner to make it cheaper and quicker to export goods from Nigeria to other African countries by removing trade barriers, Aganga said.

He explained that the German government has designed an Information and Communications Technology system that will help improve the non-trade barriers, which causes delay in movement of goods, and the cost and time of doing business in Nigeria.

The Ministry will also partner with the German government on skills development and how they can help in improving access to finance for MSMEs across the country, in line with the focus of the National Enterprises Development Programme (NEDEP).

“I am very optimistic that we will get a lot out of this collaboration,” Aganga said.

Meanwhile, the German Ambassador expressed her country’s readiness to work with Nigeria in the area of improving the ease of doing business and skills development among the people.

“Most times, people don’t get the jobs because they lack the skills even when the jobs are there.

“We want more Nigerians to be trained so that they can use their skills to work,” the Ambassador said.