• ‘The worst of the storms over’
• Dutch businessmen to invest $250m in Nigeria

“I am ever ready to take tough decisions in the best interest of the people, even if with initial pains,” President Bola Ahmed Tinubu affirmed yesterday.

He spoke in Hague, The Netherlands during the business session of the bilateral meeting with the Dutch team led by Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

The President led a Nigerian delegation on a state visit to the European country.

After the meeting, The Netherlands promised an investment worth $250 million in Nigeria in the next few months, according to a statement by presidential spokesman Ajuri Ngelale.

President Tinubu, on his assumption of office last year, declared that “subsidy is gone”, a pronouncement that was followed by the unification of exchange rates.

Speaking at the meeting, Tinubu said: “I am a determined leader of my people.

“I have and will continue to take the difficult decisions that will benefit our people, even if there is short-term pain.

“We have gone through the worst of the storms. I am unafraid of the consequences once I know that my actions are in the best long-term interests of all Nigerians.

“The Nigerian naira is one of the world’s best-performing currencies today.

“We took the necessary risk, and all resilient Nigerians kept faith with us.

“They will be rewarded, and the reward will only be greater as we partner effectively with you on new opportunities for development.

“As leaders, we must make decisions for the benefit of our nations, and we cannot shy away from that.”

He expressed firm commitment to the developmental partnership between Nigeria and the European Union (EU).

The President noted that symbiotic economic ties remain the best long-term path to sustainable and mutual prosperity rather than one-sided relationships in which bilateral trade is skewed too much in one direction.

Acknowledging the positive impacts of the various reforms carried out by the

Tinubu administration, Rutte said: “You are promoting democratic governance and the solutions it can bring in dealing with problems of development.

“I saw how you went through democratic channels to remove an incumbent president in 2015 in partnership with President Muhammadu Buhari and how that has led to development in your country.

“I saw you take the courageous decisions to deal with fuel subsidies and other reforms, and we are interested in what allowed you to take the decisions that many before you could not take. And you took those decisions early in your term. It shows rare determination. And your stand in ECOWAS, all of these point to your commitment to leadership.”

Thrilled by the confidence triggered by President Tinubu’s reforms in the economy, Rutte unfolded plans by Dutch businessmen to invest $250 million in Nigeria.

The investments, which the PM said would be activated over the next few months, include a $100 million stake in a waste-to-wealth industrial facility in Lagos, the nation’s industrial hub.

Wooing the Dutch investors, the President listed the immense opportunities available in the country across a pool of sectors, restating his Administration’s commitment to deepening ongoing reforms to further enhance the investment climate.

Nigeria, Tinubu said, is well-positioned to power the clean energy future of Europe and the world with its high-grade lithium deposits.

According to the President, Nigeria seeks robust, balanced and mutually beneficial partnerships that will bring about value-addition in areas like solid minerals.

He said: “Taking a holistic view of the world order, there is a tremendous opportunity between us across trade spheres but especially in solid minerals, where we have high-grade lithium deposits that we know can power the clean energy future of the world.

“There is excellent value-additive opportunity in Nigeria. The world knows us for oil. They will soon know us for greater innovative exploits in other areas.

“We have an extremely dynamic youth population in Nigeria. It is a young country.

“Seventy per cent of our people are under the age of 30 and when we are referring to 200 million plus citizens, it represents both a massive workforce and a massive market for Dutch and other international investors.

“If our young people know they can achieve a good future in Nigeria, they will stay home and build our nation to greatness.

“Lawful migration of trained Nigerian minds and hands will be a benefit to Europe, and irregular migration will no longer be a source of fear in Europe if we partner effectively.

“This is what we want and it is why we are adamant about providing student loans and new credit opportunities to not only enhance the skills of our people but also to ensure that they can access a higher quality of life within their legitimate incomes.

“We will transform our economy, and our young people will be the reason.”

He asserted that the confidence Nigerians had in themselves encouraged him to make some tough decisions on their behalf, adding that the citizens need long-term tools to succeed.