Saraki Assures Investors Of Attractive Business Environment
Fatimah Abdullahi
Nigeria’s Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, on Friday said the Senate is committed to enacting appropriate legislations to create attractive business environment in the country.
Saraki stated this when the Chairman of Black Rhino Group and Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, led the Chairman and Co-founder of Blackstone Group, Stephen Schwarzman, Alhaji Aliko Dangote and his delegation on a courtesy call on the Senate President in Abuja.
The Senate President told the delegation that the 8th Senate would concentrate on commercial aspects of the nation’s laws having successfully reviewed the criminal aspect in the 7th Senate.
“I congratulate you for the first step you have taken in coming to invest in Nigeria and to reassure you that as far as we are concerned, the Senate will give support in any way we can to make legislations that will make investing in Nigeria conducive.
“One of our priorities in the legislature is to look at the private sector and the business environment because some of our old laws have not been reviewed and that is why we are setting up committees to look at and make it more interesting and attractive to invest in Nigeria.
“In the Seventh Senate, we have done a review of the criminal aspect of the laws and brought them up to date and now we are dealing on the commercial side,” he said.
Earlier, the leader of the delegation, Emir Sanusi II said his firm, Black Rhino Group, which handles Africa’s infrastructure investments, is partnering with Dangote Group to make significant investments in the country.
He said, “I am here in my capacity as the chairman, Black Rhino Group which handles Africa’s infrastructure investment and we are committed, in partnership with President Aliko Dangote, to make significant investments in power, energy and infrastructure in this country.
“Stephen (Chairman and Co-founder of Blackstone Group) is here on working visit and he will meet the President today basically given his assurance of continued support to the group and this country and to the effort of the administration to fix the infrastructure problems of the country.”
Speaking, Chairman and Co-founder of Blackstone Group, Stephen Schwarzman, congratulated Saraki on his election as Senate President.
He said his company is partnering with Aliko Dangote to invest in projects in the country.
“We have been very active in the infrastructure business particularly with power. We have teamed up with Aliko Dangote to try and do some projects here in Nigeria.
“We are very positive about the impact we can make and as an outsider, we have seen the change, the government’s emphasis on power. It is very important from an outsider’s perspective”, Schwarzman said.