UK, US ready to partner Nigeria to develop Marine & Blue economy
The United Kingdom Government and the United States counterpart have expressed readiness to partner the Nigerian towards developing the newly created Marine and Blue Economy Ministry to support the country’s economy.
The representatives of the two countries stated this on Tuesday, during their separate meetings with the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, at his office in Abuja.
The US delegation was led by Ambassador Jessye Lapenn, the Senior Coordinator for Atlantic Cooperation, while that of the UK was led by its High Commissioner to Nigeria, Dr. Richard Montgomery.
Speaking during the visit, Ambassador Lapenn, who noted that the minister was the first person she was visiting after the ministerial meeting for Atlantic Cooperation, which was convened by the US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken on the margins of the 78th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, said the US government was willing to offer technical support to the ministry with a view to supporting Nigeria’s economic growth through the sector.
She further said that the two countries would also be exploring technology to solve some of the challenges in the Marine and Blue Economy sector.
On his part, the British High Commissioner, Montgomery, expressed his government’s desire to partner with the Nigeria to tackle the challenge of illegal fishing in Nigeria’s waters, just as he applauded the decision of the minister to embark on a PPP arrangement in terms of investment in the sector.
He noted that UK was willing and ready to share information and precautionary lessons with Nigeria with a view to partnering it to protect its marine resources.
The minister, while separately thanking the teams for the visits, noted that Nigeria through the new ministry would be willing to develop coastal tourism and create a conducive atmosphere for businesses to thrive.
He expressed Nigeria’s commitment to implementing the Atlantic Cooperation initiative declarations.
“We are committed to rehabilitating our ports for efficiency. I am particularly excited about the desire to partner with us to tackle the challenge of illegal fishing in our waters.
“We believe that marine fishing will support our economic growth and create job opportunities, especially for our youths. We will equally be leveraging the UK’s Blue Planet Fund, aimed at supporting developing countries like us to protect the marine environment and reduce poverty, especially now that there is a Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy in place in Nigeria,” Oyetola added.