Trade relations between Nigeria and Germany received a boost on Monday as the Abeokuta Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture signed a Chambers Collaboration Project agreement with representatives of the Giessen-Friedberg Chamber of Commerce in Germany.
The development was contained in a statement issued by the Communication and Media Officer of the Chamber, Shola James Showunmi, after a meeting between the leadership of ABEOCCIMA and the Chambers Collaboration Project Team from the German chamber.
The German delegation was led by the Project Director, Dr Kirsten Albrecht. Other members of the team at the meeting were Mr Martin Straehle, Mr Sherif Olaleye and Mr Victor Adegoke.
Proceedings began with the introduction of the KVP team by Olaleye, after which the Executive Secretary of ABEOCCIMA, Alhaji Rahman Maku, introduced members of the Chamber’s leadership present at the meeting.
Those in attendance included the First Deputy President, Pastor Ibrahim Bada, the Second Deputy President, Engineer Lekan Jiboku, Vice Presidents Alhaji Taiwo Raji and Mr Solomon Enilolobo, Financial Secretary Alhaji Nureni Odunmbaku, Council Member Mr Gbolahan Olude and the Immediate Past President, Otunba A. Babs Adesanya.
In his remarks, Maku welcomed the German delegation to the Chamber and expressed appreciation to the Giessen-Friedberg Chamber of Commerce for considering ABEOCCIMA worthy of participating in the second phase of the Chambers Collaboration project.
He assured the visiting team that the Chamber would make every effort to ensure the success of the project and maximise the opportunities it would bring to members.
Speaking during the meeting, Albrecht stressed the importance of the initiative and called for the active involvement of members of the Chamber to ensure the success of the project.
She noted that the project proposal had already been reviewed and approved by the German partners, which made the signing of the project documents necessary during the meeting.
Providing further details, Straehle said the collaboration would focus on two key areas, sustainable organisational development and innovation in services designed for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
He also mentioned the leadership portfolio retreat currently underway as one of the demand driven activities that ABEOCCIMA will implement under the project.
According to him, the partnership is expected to promote collaboration between Nigerian and German businesses across sectors such as fintech, tourism and logistics, digital marketing, renewable energy, pharmaceuticals, health and medical sciences and textiles.
Straehle added that the initiative would further strengthen trade relations between entrepreneurs in both countries ahead of the “World Meets in Giessen” networking event scheduled for June 2026 in Germany.
The meeting ended with the formal signing of the project agreement by Albrecht and Bada on behalf of the Giessen-Friedberg Chamber of Commerce and ABEOCCIMA respectively.
