The Coca-Cola Company has announced plans to invest $1 billion in Nigeria over the next five years.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, Zoran Bogdanovic, announced this during a meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Thursday, September 19, 2024.
Bogdanovic explained that the company’s confidence in Nigerian government policies encouraged it to make the $1 billion investment pledge.
He said: Mr President, in your inaugural address, we were very pleased to hear of your invitation for foreign investors to invest and your assurance that foreign businesses can repatriate dividends and profits.
“That assurance gives us the confidence to continue our investments. Since 2013, we have invested $ 1.5 billion in Nigeria in capacity expansion, transformation of our supply chain infrastructure capabilities, training and development.
“I am very pleased to announce that, with a predictable and enabling environment in place, we plan to invest an additional $1 billion over the next five years.
“We believe Nigeria’s potential is tremendous, and we are committed to working with the government to realise this potential.”
On his part, Tinubu Tinubu commended Coca-Cola for its long-standing partnership with Nigeria and for promoting investment opportunities which he said employed over 3,000 people across nine production facilities.
He said: “We are business-friendly, and as I said at my inauguration, we must create an environment of easy-in and easy-out for businesses.
“We are building a financial system where you can invest, re-invest, and repatriate all your dividends. I have a firm belief in that.”
Also speaking, the Coca-Cola Company President and Chief Financial Officer, John Murphy, disclosed that the company generates N320 billion annually through nearly 300,000 customers and contributes almost N90 billion in revenue to the Nigerian government.
Murphy said: “We are very proud of the growth of the business over a long period and its impact on the daily lives of many Nigerians.
“Beyond the financial impacts, we are also very committed to supporting the communities, and over the last number of years, we’ve had a special focus on several areas in the world of sustainability, water packaging and others.”
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