President of Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce (NACC), Mrs Dame Adebola Williams |
Williams made the pledge at the Chamber’s 60th Annual
General Meeting (AGM) and investiture ceremony on Wednesday in Lagos.
She said that the step would help to shore up Nigeria’s
exports indices. The United States of America stands as Nigeria’s
second-largest trading partner with $1.48 billion imports from Nigeria, after
China.
Williams said she would strive to boost activities and
schemes aimed at enabling members of the chamber to package their products for
exports to the United States of America.
She urged the government to continue to expand efforts at
revitalizing Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME). This, she said was to
enable them to recoup their losses as global economies recover from the impact
of the coronavirus pandemic.
The NACC president said that the newly sworn-in executives
were also committed to repairing the damages caused by the pandemic to the
chamber and its activities.
“The pandemic has done some havoc on the activities of the
Chamber, so we would start off by trying to repair these damages to close the
gaps it created, especially by resuming some of our physical activities.
“As a new team, we would watch, look at the policies and
understand how they line up with what government is doing, and see how we can
interface with government by providing appropriate guidelines, particularly for
the MSME.
“Also, for the chamber, our top priority is aimed at
encouraging our members with some of our many schemes, to enable them to
package their products properly for exports.
“They must see what they are deriving from being members,”
she said.
In his remarks, the immediate past President, Otunba
Oluwatoyin Akomolafe, said that the committees during his tenure discharged
their duties with every sense of commitment and professionalism.
Akomolafe said that local and international networks were
widened during his administration, with the chamber collaborating with Diaspora
African Inc, a Washington-based Non- governmental Organisation.
The NGO is committed to facilitating the return of African
Americans to Nigeria and other African countries for tourism, business, and
emigration.
He said that the venture was capable of generating billions
of dollars for the Nigerian economy in the nearest future.
The immediate past president said that the establishment of
a Nigerian Federal Credit Union in the USA was in the pipeline.
He said that in recognition of the Chamber’s need to expand
its network base for better outreach and increased public engagement, a new
chapter was inaugurated in Atlanta, Georgia, the USA in 2020.
“Accordingly, the Chamber now has two Chapters in the United
States (Houston, Texas and Atlanta, Georgia). These are in addition to the
existing eight Chapters in Nigeria, cutting across all geographical zones of
the country.
“It is noteworthy that this event marks the last time I will
be chairing the Chamber’s Annual General Meeting as the National President.
“Thus, I will therefore like to especially thank the
leadership of these committees for their time and dedication in sustaining the
aims and aspirations of my administration.
“I also thank our friends and colleagues at both the US
Commercial Sections of the US Embassy and USAID.
“I appreciate the heads of our Embassy and Consulates in the
United States for their collaboration and support,” he said. (NAN)