BY Busola Aro
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) says Nigeria and India can expand mutual strengths to develop opportunities for the youth.
PwC said this in a report titled ‘Nigeria-India: Learnings from two large democracies’.
The report hexplained the similarities between the two developing countries in terms of population, culture, common democracy, diaspora and economy.
It said despite the commonalities, there are discrepancies in technology, business lines and economics.
The report noted that these differences can, however, pose a chance for Nigeria to tap into the opportunities of India and address similar challenges, as well as India investing in Nigeria to become a global influence.
“Despite the similarities between the two countries, India has managed to perform much better on certain key dimensions like; export of services, government — enabled development, strengthening the educational system, formalising the informal sector, technology adoption, and cultural exports. Improving on these key dimensions might help Nigeria close the gap between itself and India,” the report reads.
“The export of services is a huge area of opportunity that can be explored by Nigeria. India’s share of world services as of 2018 stood at 3.5 percent, which is seven times more than the 0.5 percent recorded in 1995. This growth can be primarily attributed to the rise of ICT services and medical and wellness tourism. The primary reason behind the growth of the services sector in India is the underlying infrastructure for producing an economically vibrant and skilled workforce.
“To initiate government-enabled development, the Nigerian government can develop conducive policy frameworks that encourage private sector participation, which can prompt further investments from India, and other countries and help address many pressing issues.”
The report added that despite India’s uniqueness, it can explore and gain from Africa’s largest trade centre, Nigeria, by investing in ICT services, tech startups, agriculture, education, energy and the pharmaceutical industry.
“India and Nigeria acting as close allies on the economy, environment, security and other areas requiring international co-operation, have the potential to fundamentally alter the geopolitical balance of power particularly if Nigeria can play a powerful leadership role in bringing Africa closer to India,” it added.
“Ultimately, the India-Africa co-operation will become the pillar of a new, multi-polar world.”
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