France and Nigeria establish financial and infrastructural agreements

Two agreements have been made between France and Nigeria to improve food security and infrastructure development, and Nigerian lenders United Bank for Africa (UBA) (UBA.LG) and Zenith Bank (ZENITHB.LG) have expanded their operations into France.

The agreements, which were signed the day before during President Bola Tinubu’s state visit to Paris, included a 300 million euro investment plan to support the development of human capital, critical infrastructure, healthcare, transportation, agriculture, and renewable energy throughout Nigeria, according to Bayo Onanuga, the country’s presidential spokesperson, on Friday.

A letter of intent to enable the investments was signed by French Economy Minister Antoine Armand and Nigerian Finance Minister Wale Edun. According to a statement from Onanuga, both countries also promised to expedite trade and investment procedures.

“The two countries committed to forge a strategic relationship in project implementation and enhance mutual trade and cross border services by removing fiscal barriers while protecting labour rights,” according to a joint statement.

Zenith Bank opened its doors in Paris in addition to the government-level accords, and UBA is expected to follow after reaching an agreement with French authorities to start business in Paris, according to Onanuga.