The government of Lesotho and Bayelsa State have held talks on areas of economic cooperation, including agriculture, oil and gas, tourism, cold water development and textile warehousing.
The bilateral meeting between the country’s Prime Minister, Ntsokoane Samuel Matekane, and Governor of Bayelsa State, Douye Diri, took place on Sunday, at the State House in Maseru, the capital city of Lesotho.
Key Highlights
- Governor Douye Diri met Lesotho’s Prime Minister, Ntsokoane Matekane, at the State House in Maseru.
- Talks covered agriculture, oil and gas, tourism, cold water development and textile warehousing.
- Diri pitched Bayelsa’s oil and gas, coastline, cassava starch and rice production for collaboration.
- Matekane called for more intra-African trade and value addition to Africa’s natural resources.
- Lesotho said it depends on Nigeria’s oil expertise and sees Bayelsa as a strategic partner.
Governor Diri, who recalled an earlier meeting with Matekane in Abuja, said Bayelsa State is interested in exploring areas of economic benefits, particularly where it has comparative advantages.
He said the state is rich in crude oil and gas deposits, in addition to having the longest coastline in Nigeria, that places it at a strategic position in the Gulf of Guinea.
Lesotho is one of the world’s smallest, landlocked nations located in Southern Africa and it is rich in diamond and is a leader in cold water production and export as well as in textile production.
Bayelsa Eyes Cassava Starch, Rice Partnership
Governor Diri also stated that the state is looking at exporting industrial starch from its cassava processing factory, stating further that “rice production is another commodity that has possibility for collaboration. Bayelsa is a massive wetland and the entire state is a rice belt.”
On inter-African trade, Diri noted that countries on the continent do business more with those outside the region and that it is time for the practice to change.
He said his administration is winding down and that both teams have to act fast to make the partnership a reality.
Also, the Director-General of the Bayelsa State Investment Promotion Agency (BIPA), Patience Abah, in a presentation, said the state is following the general framework of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Abah stated the importance of the meeting and that agreements reached were just words on paper except the participating states take steps to actualise them.
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Lesotho Seeks Mutually Beneficial Investment
The Lesotho Prime Minister, Ntsokoane Matekane, in his remarks, said the country is interested in any economic relationship and investment that is mutually beneficial.
Ntsokoane, who was a reputable businessman and the country’s richest man before winning election in 2022, said African countries must first derive the benefits from their natural resources rather than relying on the imported finished products from them.
He said: “Africa has been home to a number of minerals and natural resources, but we always export everything we have. They get value outside and come back more expensive for us.
“Now, when you look at the trade between Lesotho and China or US and compare it with between Lesotho and Nigeria, it is a totally different story. So, it is very important for us to start these engagements to ensure that there is intra-trade between African countries.”
Ntsokoane stated that Lesotho is targeting 100 percent renewable energy for export to the Southern African region, while also speaking about the possibility of setting up data centres for digitised businesses, taking advantage of Lesotho’s cool temperatures and abundant water supply from the mountains.
He further stated that the country depends on Nigeria’s expertise in the oil industry and that Bayelsa State will be a strategic partner in that sector because of its history and experience in oil exploration activities.
After the meeting, Governor Diri participated in the diamond independence jubilee celebrations of the country, held at the National Stadium in Maseru.
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