INTERVIEW
The ECOWAS- Turkish export products fair is scheduled to hold in Lagos next week. Mr. Yavuz Zemheri is an executive member of the association of investors and businessmen of Turkey and Nigeria. He said the fair has huge economic relevance for the country as Turkey imports 90 percent of its sesame need from Nigeria. It’s basically about bringing the whole of the West African sub region and Turkey to Nigeria. Over 150 companies from different sectors comprising of machineries, household appliances, textile, technology and many more are coming from Turkey. This fair also gives opportunities for people who want to partner with Nigerian businessmen, as is it also open for those who want to invest their businesses in Nigeria. The fair is also going to be an opportunity for small scale investors in Nigeria to key into some of the business ideas that other business men and women from the Diaspora will be coming with.
Why did you choose Nigeria as the first country to host this exhibition in West Africa?
Nigeria is the largest and biggest market on the African continent. It has a very large population and Nigeria is a very popular country in Africa and it is also the leading country in Africa especially the ECOWAS region.
Nigeria is the hub of African business opportunities so it was clear we had to start from Nigeria. From here we can go on to Ghana and then to other African countries. But for now Nigeria has huge potentials which it is yet to realize and utilize well. Nigeria is West Africa and so we had to partner with ECOWAS to be able to achieve this.
Do you think people will be quick to conclude that Nigeria is a market for substandard goods from foreign countries? And would it be right to say Turkey is towing the same line?
It would be absolutely wrong and a grievous misconception for anyone to think that Nigeria is a dump site for any commodity. Interestingly in our association, we have Nigerian members as we are not only working for Turkish businessmen. Again, talking about substandard products, it depends on the country because anyone can testify that Turkish products are of European quality. The prices are of course higher than Chinese products and at the same time lower than European prices. These days, people are complaining about Chinese products and we know what it could mean for business so we are certain that we would bring in quality products to this fair because in the near future we do not want to have complaints about Turkish products so we are nipping it in the bud to avoid such cases in future.
via allAfrica.com: Nigeria: Trade Between Nigeria and Turkey Now $2bn-Turkish Investor (Page 1 of 3).
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