By Ezra Ukanwa, Abuja

In a bid to strengthen bilateral ties and boost economic cooperation, Taiwan has expressed interest to partner Nigeria to bolster economic development in the country.

Vanguard reports that Nigeria is the largest economy in Africa and has a rapidly growing population, making it an attractive market for Taiwanese businesses.

This was made known during a knowledge Sharing Workshop on E-health, Agriculture and Cyber Security, organized by the Taiwan Trade Mission in partnership with Taiwan Friendship Association in Nigeria, on Tuesday in Abuja.

Speaking, the Ambassador, Taipei Trade Office, Andy Yih-Ping Liu, said the potential partnership between Taiwan and Nigeria could involve cooperation in various sectors such as technology, agriculture, and infrastructure development.

He added that a partnership with Nigeria would not only benefit the two countries but also contribute to peace and stability in the region.

He emphasized the importance of building mutually beneficial relationships with countries around the world.

His words: “Taiwan is a successful story for developing everything based on our survival needs because we have no natural resources and we envy Nigeria so much you have everything that we don’t have and at the same time we suffer so much from natural disasters.

“So, what we have developed is purely based on our own national orientation, our own national development project. Our economy is a very successful model or reference model for Nigeria to learn something from the oil economy, so if the Nigerian government would like to develop some more, in depth cooperation with Taiwan, what Taiwan can provide is quite a lot in how to develop the civil society based on small and medium enterprises, SMEs and woman empowerment, how to develop the youth capacity building based on basic education, vocational education and all kinds of industrial training by the need of our society.

“So, what we can do now is to quickly finalize the renewal of the agreement for mutual protection of investment, and then we try to move on with whatever the Nigerian government will have to discuss with us.

“I think that the Nigerian government can take into consideration or deepen relations with Taiwan because we mean no harm to anyone. We do not come to other people’s backyard to take other people’s gold. We don’t do illegal mining.”

Also speaking, the president, TFAN, Emmanuel Ohiomokhare, said the initiative “aims to harness the flourishing ties with the Taiwan government to impart knowledge to young Nigerians aged 35 and below.”

He added: “TFAN represents Nigerians who have benefited from skill acquisition and knowledge transfer facilitated by the Taiwan government.

“Over nearly two decades, the Taiwan government has generously sponsored Nigerian professionals to Taiwan, enabling them to enhance their expertise in various fields.

“Some have attended periodic workshops, while others have pursued full undergraduate and postgraduate programs. Many of these individuals have returned to Nigeria and are actively applying their newfound knowledge and skills in their respective careers.”