By Ayomide Otitoju
The Nigeria–China Strategic Partnership (NCSP) has reaffirmed its commitment to deepening collaboration with the Organized Private Sector to accelerate Nigeria’s industrial expansion.
This followed a high-level meeting with the leadership of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), where both parties agreed to align institutional efforts to strengthen Nigeria–China economic cooperation and position Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) as key beneficiaries of trade, manufacturing and investment initiatives.
Director-General of NCSP, Joseph Tegbe, said the Partnership was established as a structured coordination platform to drive Nigeria’s strategic economic engagement with China in a disciplined and result-oriented manner. He explained that its core mandates include oversight of Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC)-related initiatives, advancement of priority economic programmes, and facilitation of catalytic industrial projects across key sectors.
Tegbe noted that the next phase of engagement would focus on harmonising ongoing initiatives, strengthening inter-agency coordination, and establishing clearer execution frameworks to ensure Nigerian businesses—particularly SMEs—benefit more directly and sustainably from bilateral trade and investment flows.
The meeting also reviewed existing collaborations and investment pipelines. Both sides agreed on the need to streamline coordination across federal and subnational levels to improve policy coherence, enhance implementation efficiency, and eliminate fragmentation in order to maximise scale.
Tegbe further underscored the importance of leveraging landmark trade instruments such as China’s Zero-Tariff Agreement with African countries to scale up domestic manufacturing, deepen value addition, and enhance Nigeria’s export competitiveness.
