India and Nigeria on 16 March 2011 signed the following agreements during the visit of Nigerian foreign minister HEH Odein Ajumogobia to India.
• Agreed Minutes of Discussions at the Fifth Session of the India-Nigeria Joint Commission.
• MoU for Cooperation in the pharmaceutical sector between Department of Pharmaceuticals in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers of the Govt. of the Republic of India and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Federal Ministry of Health of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Nigeria is seeking a larger Indian role in the development of its railways, power and small and medium industries besides oil exploration, and all with time-bound goals.Exploration major Oil and Natural Gas Corp's (ONGC) operations in Dehradun including its research facilities, Indian Railways' consultancy arm RITES, some of the power projects of National Thermal Power Corp and India's initiatives in rural development are being studied by the Nigerian delegation.
Bilateral Trade between India and Nigeria
Oil Trade: In recent years Nigeria has been one of the main sources of crude for
India. Nigeria is highly important for our energy security matters as we import around 8% to 12% of our crude requirements from Nigeria.
Hydrocarbons Sector: Apart from trade in hydrocarbons, Indian presence in Nigeria’s upstream sector has arrived at a critical threshold of participation in the upstream sector and refining. During 2005-07, Indian companies participated in Nigerian bid rounds and won 6 oil blocks.
Major points regarding the commercial relations between India and Nigeria are as following:
• Nigeria is India's largest trading partner in Africa. At present, India-Nigeria trade is about $10 billion, with the trade balance heavily in favour of Nigeria.
• Nigerian exports to India are around 9 billion us dollars, while India's exports to Nigeria are only a little over 1 billion us dollars.
• Nigeria is looking to increase its trade with India by five times to 50 billion US dollars by 2015.
• The African nation has given RITES the option to undertake construction of any of the three major rail routes it is planning.
• India-Africa Hydrocarbon Conclave to be hosted by the petroleum ministry here in April 2006.
• The two-day fair, tagged, Brand India Pharma, witnessed a massive turnout from Nigerians seeking information or wanting to purchase.
Nigeria also wants duty-free market access for its exports to India. Significantly, Nigeria also wants to attract 10 billion US dollars-worth fresh foreign direct investment (FDI) from India in the next five years. FICCI's has taken Namaskar Africa initiative to expand India’s commercial interests in the region. India’s annual requirement of Nigerian crude oil would be around 18 million tones.
Indian Community in Nigeria
Total Indian community in Nigeria is estimated to be 35,000 persons. Out of these about 15,000 are thought to be foreign passport holders and about 20,000 are Indian nationals. In general, Indians in Nigeria are well off and enjoy non-controversial existence. Some Indians have been affected by criminal incidents.
India established a diplomatic mission in Nigeria in1958, even before Nigeria became independent in 1960. Both countries have been in the forefront of the worldwide anti-colonial and anti-apartheid struggle and have collaborated in various international fora. Following his landmark visit to Nigeria in September 1962, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Nigeria’s first Prime Minister TafawaBalewa developed mutual respect and admiration.
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