The African Development Bank (AfDB), has called for strong economic ties between Nigeria and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to unlock potential in both countries to boost Africa’s development.
The AfDB President, Mr Akinwumi Adesina made the call when he hosted DRC’s President, Felix Tshisekedi at a breakfast meeting with Nigerian investors in Abuja on Saturday.
Adesina said there was the need for effective bridge between Nigeria and DRC as they were the largest counties on the continent in terms of population.
“I want Nigeria to build an effective investment bridge with DRC because if you unlock DRC’s potential, plus Nigeria’s own, Africa will develop.
“Mr President, our investors are here with you, I am a Nigerian, I know them and proud of them and also proud of you too.
“Adesina said DRC was blessed with natural resources like Nigeria, adding that Congo had huge potential like gold, diamonds, copper, cobalt, and oil among others.
According to him, the country accounted for about 50 per cent of global supply of cobalt. He said energy and agriculture were great areas Nigerian investors could explore because of enormous potential in these sectors.
According to him, there is massive hydro power project which is known as Ginga with potential of 100,000 megawatts.
“We will help DRC to unlock its potential in this energy project, we need investors that will go there to explore.
“In agriculture, DRC is a country of 80 million people and they also have 80 million hectares of land for agriculture and this area also needs investors” he said.
In his remarks, Tshisekedi of DRC pledged to collaborate with Nigeria to facilitate and ensure smooth trade between the two countries.
He said a lot of Nigerians were presently residing in his country and embarking on different trades without any hindrance. According to him, his country has potential in agriculture due to its vast and fertile land and all year round rainfall.
He said out of 80 million hectares of arable land, it was yet to utilise 10 per cent of it. According to him, DRC has potential to feed one billion people with massive arable land the country is blessed with.
“I am calling my African brothers to come and invest in agriculture and energy and this will help us to invest in our youth,” he said.
The president urged African countries to be united, while frowning at ethnic and tribal conflicts in some countries which he described as unnecessary.
