By Chinelo Obogo
The Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Gaston Browne, has commended Air Peace for its strides, especially the recent commencement of direct flights to London. This is as the Prime Minister has also wooed Nigeria’s business community to invest in the Caribbean nation.
Browne made the statement at a Business Forum/Dinner which held recently in Lagos and had in attendance captains of industry, the management of Air Peace, former NFF President, Amaju Pinnick, aviation stakeholders and representatives of the Lagos State government.
The Prime Minister, who lauded the chairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, for the business strategy, congratulated the airline for the recent London service and stated that his country looks forward to when Air Peace will begin scheduled direct flights into Antigua and Barbuda as this will drive socio-economic development and strengthen bilateral relations between both nations.
He noted the partnership between his government and Air Peace for the establishment of LIAT 2020 airline in Antigua and Barbuda which will commence operations in the Caribbeans soon. He expressed appreciation to Onyema for taking the big step of investing in the Caribbean nation.
Onyema, in his opening remarks, called on the governments of Nigeria and Antigua and Barbuda to explore development opportunities for mutual benefits. He urged other investors to consider investing in Antigua and Barbuda as he did with the LIAT 2020 airline and has not regretted it. “We are going long-haul with the government of Antigua and Barbuda, and in the coming weeks or months, the LIAT birds will hit the Caribbean skies. I have invested there. I cannot mislead you,” he said.
Browne detailed the business oppourtunities that abound in his country and implored the Nigerian business community to come and invest, noting that Antigua and Barbuda is safe and has an incentivised business environment. He stressed the Investor Immigration Programme which was developed to grant citizenship to foreign nationals who invest in the country.
He also listed energy, education, pharmaceuticals, banking, real estate, tourism, fintech, agriculture, manufacturing and blockchain as some of the sectors needing investment, adding that the country has impressive development indices with low inflation rate. Browne said the key objective of his country is to strengthen the relationship between Antigua and Barbuda and Nigeria as well as the rest of Africa.