‘I am too old to japa’ – Aisha Rimi assumes office as NIPC boss

Aisha Rimi, the newly appointed Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), has affirmed her commitment to driving Nigeria’s economic growth through strategic investment promotion initiatives.

Rimi made this commitment during her inaugural address at the NIPC headquarters in Abuja on Monday, following her assumption of office. Her appointment came as part of a significant restructuring approved by President Bola Tinubu last Friday, encompassing the leadership of 12 agencies and parastatals under the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

President Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, stated that this reshuffling is in alignment with the president’s vision to anchor Nigeria’s economic revitalization on trade expansion, focusing on small, medium, and large-scale industry facilitation within the country.

Addressing the NIPC staff, Rimi emphasized her determination to reposition the NIPC to attract fresh streams of foreign investments into Nigeria, aiming to bolster government revenue and generate much-needed employment opportunities.

Expressing gratitude to the president for the opportunity, she stated, “First, I am grateful to Mr President for this opportunity because there are over 100 million persons who could be doing this job. So I don’t take it lightly and I don’t take it for granted. It is a task I don’t take lightly because NIPC is the gateway to Nigeria and without a functional, operational, and efficient NIPC, investment will just amount to nothing. We are not just here to promote but also to facilitate, and if we succeed, Nigeria will succeed. I am too old to japa and I can’t go anywhere.”