The new President of Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce, Mr Adeyemi Adefulu, said on Thursday, that bilateral trade opportunities between Nigeria and Britain  were  under-utilised.
Adefulu made the statement at the annual general meeting and Luncheon of the chamber in Lagos, recently.
“In spite of the long-standing relationship between Nigeria and Britain, the trade volume still suggests that the capacity of trade is backlogged by about 20 billion pounds.
“The volume of oil in the exports still tops the list, making it obvious that there is over-dependence on oil.
“Nigerian-British trade surplus does not touch the Nigerian farmers, neither do our exports, like pepper, pineapple and others, reach the average British home.
“This shows a serious disconnect between Nigerian and British policies in favour of the trade between the two countries,” Adefulu said.
He said that more investments needed to be made in the non-oil sector, where pepper, flour, yams, cashew nuts, sesame seeds and more, would be exported on a daily basis.
Adefulu also said that more empowerment and orientation should be given to farmers to assist them to have export in focus.
“There is also a need for the governments of the two countries involved to avoid policy somersault, but consistently formulate the ones that would favour trade,” he said.
It would be recalled  that Adefulu took over from Mr Thomas Awagu as President of the chamber at the luncheon.