President Muhammadu Buhari said Tuesday in Abuja that his administration will continue to welcome the support and understanding of the United States as it strives to achieve greater internal security and socio-economic progress in Nigeria.
Receiving a delegation led by the United States Secretary of Commerce, Ms Penny Pritzker at the Presidential Villa, President Buhari applauded ongoing American collaboration with his administration on security and developmental issues.
“I remain grateful for the reception accorded me and my team when we visited the United States at the invitation of President Obama.
“We discussed security, corruption, infrastructure, and many other issues.
“We thank America for sending experts to train our troops and providing hardware for our military because we must first stabilize the country before we can move it forward,” the President told the delegation which included the United States Ambassador to Nigeria, James Entwistle, and three others.
The Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, who was at the meeting, said that although Nigeria currently faces serious challenges, it is also a time of great opportunities for the country.
“It’s time to diversify our economy from oil. We’ve always talked about it, but never got round to doing it. The opportunity has come now. We have all it takes to be an agricultural nation. We also have solid minerals and we must develop our infrastructure in order to aid business.”
Ms Pritzker told President Buhari that she was in Nigeria with 10 leading American business men and women, at the prompting of President Obama.
“The purpose is to better understand the opportunities and challenges of doing business in Nigeria. Our team is very optimistic about your government’s commitment to security, good governance, fighting corruption, having reliable and regular regulatory policies.
“All these make us optimistic about working together. We are not here to sell policies, but to partner with you,” she said.