President Goodluck Jonathan says the volume of trade between Nigeria and the United States will continue to grow with greater cooperation between the public and private sectors of both countries.
This is contained in a statement issued yesterday in Abuja by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati.
It quoted Jonathan as saying this at a dinner held in his honour by the U.S. Chambers of Commerce (UCC) and the Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) in Washington DC.
According to the statement, the trade volume between both countries has risen to a record level of $36 billion  per annum.
The president welcomed the support of the Obama administration and both organisations for ongoing efforts to positively transform the Nigerian economy and make it one of the world’s 20 largest by 2020.
Jonathan said in the statement that the recent developments had shown that Obama was right when he spoke in September 2013 of increasing international recognition of Nigeria’s role in the global economy.
He, therefore, called for greater direct investment in Nigeria from the U.S.
“Our economy has since been re-based and it is now the largest in Africa. We are the 26th largest economy in the world and the largest trading partner of the U.S. in Africa.
“The latest figures show the volume of trade between Nigeria and the U.S. to be $36 billion and still counting.
“Between last year and now, we hosted the World Economic Forum on Africa which was attended by 1,000 participants from 70 countries.
“The forum attracted over $68 billion  in investment to the African continent in form of foreign direct investments as well as private and public investments,’’ the statement said.
The statement said all African countries were targeting projects that would foster the agriculture sector, improve infrastructure such as roads, railways, hospitals, education, skill development and ICT in the continent.
Jonathan, according to the statement, said that Nigeria remained the largest source of natural gas with large areas of unexploited fertile lands for agriculture.
According to the statement, Nigeria has a huge stock of untapped solid minerals.
“We will continue to make Nigeria an attractive destination for foreign investors through the constant implementation of our policy of creating an attractive and conducive climate for investors.
“The oil and gas industry remains Nigeria’s main source of revenue and foreign exchange earner, but we are working very hard to fully diversify the country’s economy.
“We will welcome greater support from the United States for its efforts to make other sectors of the Nigerian economy more productive,’’ the statement quoted Jonathan as saying.
Jonathan assured American investors that his administration was taking all necessary action to overcome the Boko Haram insurgency and achieve greater security of lives and property in all parts of Nigeria.
Meanwhile, President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday, in Washington DC made a case for more effective international sanctions against terrorist groups such as the dreaded Boko Haram sect.
He also sought similar fate for countries, organisations and individuals that sponsor terrorism in any part of the world.
According to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, the president made the call in his statement presented at the US-African Leaders Summit.
Jonathan was quoted as calling for more effective global action and implementation of all existing international protocols against terrorism and violent extremism.
He observed that some of the security problems being faced by Nigeria and other African countries were transnational in scope and could not be resolved by any country acting alone.
He said terrorism, piracy and transnational organised crimes had become global in scope, and so, greater regional and international collaboration was required to combat them.
He said, “several African countries, including Nigeria, are now challenged by terrorism and violent extremism. For several countries in the continent, terrorism has become a real threat to social progress, peace and security.
“The violent and criminal activities of Boko Haram in my country have captured the world’s attention. This has been especially so since the terrorist group abducted some girls from their school dormitory in the North-Eastern Nigeria in April.
“Nigeria may be the epicentre of Boko Haram terrorist activities at the moment, but its affiliation with international terrorist networks, dramatically increases its capacity and reach beyond Nigeria’s borders.
“Nigeria is doing everything possible to combat Boko Haram and violent extremism. While we continue to enhance our intelligence and military capacities, we are at the same time, working on political and socio-economic solutions. We are also building partnerships, both at the regional and international levels to combat the threat posed by terrorism in our sub-region.
“In this enterprise, we are pleased to acknowledge the supportive role of the United States. The assistance that we continue to receive from the United States and our other international partners is proof indeed that partnership can multiply our strengths in addressing common challenges.
“We call for an effective international sanctions regime that would hold accountable any country, institutions and individual that finances terrorism in any part of the world. This inaugural Africa-US Summit must also call for effective action and implementation of all existing international protocols on this critical issue.
“Because terrorism, piracy and transnational organised crimes are global in scope, greater regional and international collaboration is required to combat them. We must act in concert.”
According to the statement, the president had conveyed the same message at a bilateral meeting with Vice President Joe Biden on Tuesday.
He was quoted as saying at the meeting that Nigeria, the US and the global community must work with greater synergy and unity of purpose to overcome Boko Haram and other terrorist groups.