US Deputy Treasury Secretary Adeyemo Meets Business Leaders in Lagos, Says Biden Committed to Stronger Ties With Nigeria

Dike Onwuamaeze

The United States of America’s Deputy Secretary of Treasury, Mr. Wally Adeyemo, has assured Nigeria that President Joe Biden is committed to a strong U.S.-Nigeria relationship that is built on shared values and mutual benefits.
Adeyemo said this in an address he read Monday at the Lagos Business School, which was titled “U.S.- Nigeria Economic Relations: People, Entrepreneurship and Investment.”

He said that “our administration recognises that your economic success is not only important to the approximately 200 million people who call Nigeria home; it is important to the region, the continent, and the global economy.”

He said that Nigeria was in a critical moment “where decisive actions by your government and the determination and shared effort of the Nigerian people can create the changes needed to unlock the unrealised opportunity of Africa’s most populous country.”

He also said that Nigeria’s greatest resource is not oil, it is the Nigerian people.

Adeyemo identified four economic reform priorities for Nigeria.

He said: “First, Nigeria needs a stable Naira” adding that “unifying Nigeria’s foreign exchange rates will create the kind of macroeconomic stability that is essential to attracting foreign investment.

“We commend the difficult steps your government has already taken to accomplish this goal. The path to unification is not easy, but going backwards would be even worse.

“Second, the government needs to articulate and implement a fiscal strategy that will provide the resources to make critical investments.

“The third factor for growth is a rooting out of corruption and the perception of corruption in the business environment.

“Fourth, and finally, is protecting the integrity of Nigeria’s financial system.”