The Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Abbay Thakur, said India has invested about $10billion in the development of the economy.

The ambassador added that the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted negatively on the relationship between the two countries, especially in medical tourism.

He spoke during the webinar tagged: “India-Nigeria business promotion, challenges and opportunities – Post Covid-19′

On the challenges in the trade relations, he pointed out that the absence of Indian manufacturing hubs in Africa, especially Nigeria as well as intrusion into local businesses on retailership and distribution services needs to be addressed to strengthen the ties. Thakur reminded participants that Nigeria is one of India’s biggest trading partner for years.

The President, Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) Adetokunbo Kayode, called on the government to reignite the economic ties between Nigeria and India and that this would boost the countries’ development.

Adetokunbo said: “For us to move forward, we need to rejig the already existing obsolete 1973 Trade Agreement between Nigeria and India. In doing so, we have to bear in mind that Nigeria has several more areas that it can do business with India.