L-R: Managing Director, Fixed Income, CMTA, Mr. Bonato Philipp; Managing Director, Prosper Africa, Mr. Kollar Martin; Founder and Managing Director, Prosper Africa, Dr. Kollik Michael; Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu; Chief Technical Officer, CMTA, Mr. Schmid Alexander and SPA Enugu Government, Dr. Andreas Gebauer; during a courtesy visit to the minister by the Austrian delegation in Abuja on Wednesday, 28/05/25 PHOTO: FMBEP

Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, has urged foreign investors to take advantage of the country’s enormous capacity to absorb investment, assuring them that President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms have created favourable conditions for high returns on investment.

The minister spoke in Abuja on Wednesday during a courtesy visit by a delegation from Austria for a consultative meeting regarding economic opportunities under the Nigeria-Austria Development Cooperation.

“In the last two years, there have been numerous efforts to ensure that Nigeria’s economy heads in the right direction,” he told the delegation, led by Mr Andreas Gebauer, explaining, “President Bola Tinubu has put the economy in a position where it can attract domestic and foreign investment.”

Bagudu highlighted positive economic indicators and ratings from global rating agencies as evidence that the reforms were yielding results.

He assured the delegation that the federal government was committed to maintaining the course of economic reforms. “We are determined to ensure that we listen to the private sector, or rather, people with experience such as yours, so that we can do better.”

While explaining the ministry’s role in coordinating development planning, he informed the delegation that the three tiers of government in the country possessed the capacity to attract investment for agriculture, green initiatives, and Climate Change financing, as well as to develop their infrastructure.

“Our ministry coordinates the efforts to develop investment-grade proposals that can meet investors’ requirements,” Bagudu told the delegation.

The delegation’s visit is part of the engagements under the Nigeria-Austria Development Partnership, which the ministry is facilitating to deepen economic relations between both countries. This aligns with its mandate to manage and coordinate multilateral and bilateral economic development cooperation.

The explorative and interactive working visit by the Austrian delegation represents a significant cross-cutting engagement under the Nigeria-Austria Development Partnership, touching on key sectors such as finance and environmental migration governance.

The discussions, which will focus on financing opportunities through the stock exchange and bond market, align closely with Nigeria’s economic diversification agenda and national development priorities.

The visiting delegate, interested in sustainable development, green financing, and migration governance, began a three-day working visit to Nigeria on Wednesday, concluding their visit on Friday after holding consultative discussions with relevant ministers and other senior government officials.