From Suleiman Amagbor, Lagos
The Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Honourable Gaston Alfonso Browne, has commended Nigeria leading airline, Air Peace for the airline’s trail-blazing strides into his country, affirming that the voyage has further helped deepen trade relations between Nigeria and the Caribbean country.
He disclosed that the partnership between the country’s government and Air Peace for the establishment of LIAT 2020 Airline in Antigua and Barbuda will soon come to fruition with the planned commencement of the airline’s operations in the Caribbean nation soon.
Prime Minister Browne, while commending Onyema’s bold step in investing in the country, described the airline’s recent commencement of direct flights to London as laudable.
The Prime Minister called on Nigeria’s business community to invest in his two-island Caribbean nation affirming that investment opportunities and favourable economic policies await would-be investors.
Mr. Browne spoke at a high-level Business Forum/Dinner at the weekend in Lagos where he listed energy, education, pharmaceuticals, banking, real estate, tourism, fintech, agriculture, manufacturing and blockchain as some of the sectors needing investment.
He said “I believe Africa has a significant amount of resources, and literally every African country can become a developed country. I am of the view that African countries can do even better than the Republic of China.
“Our aspiration for Nigeria is to see Nigeria become a developed country within the next decade or two. And we want to make sure that we are an early mover in the Caribbean to establish close linkages with Nigeria to increase trade and investment. The Caribbean and Africa must unite and work together to bring prosperity to our people.”
He stated that his country looks forward to when Air Peace will begin scheduled direct flights into Antigua and Barbuda as it will drive socio-economic development and strengthen bilateral relations between both nations.
Chairman of Air Peace, Dr Allen Onyema, asserted that the governments of Nigeria and Antigua and Barbuda should explore development opportunities for mutual benefits and urged fellow investors to consider investing in Antigua and Barbuda as he did with the LIAT 2020 Airline.
Onyema said “We are going long-haul with the government of Antigua and Barbuda, and in the coming weeks or months; the LIAT birds will hit the Caribbean skies. I have invested there. I cannot mislead you.”
Prime Minister Browne detailed the business opportunities that abound in his country and implored the Nigerian business community to come and invest, noting that Antigua and Barbuda is safe and has an incentivised business environment.
He stressed the Investor Immigration Programme which was developed to grant citizenship to foreign nationals who invest in the country, adding that the country has impressive development indices with low inflation rate.
According to him, the key objective of his country is to strengthen the relationship between Antigua and Barbuda and Nigeria as well as the rest of Africa.
The forum had in attendance captains of industry, the management of Air Peace, former Nigeria Football Federation President, Amaju Pinnick, ex Nigerian footballer, Segun Odegbami, aviators and representatives of the Lagos State Government.
