 But business and trade between Nigeria and Vietnam have since significant growth in the last decade, where bilateral trade volumes rising from 280 million US dollars in 2014 to about 700 million US dollars in 2022. This was disclosed by the President of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Michael Olawale Cole, at the Nigeria-Vietnam Business Forum. It is an Nigeria-Venang Business Forum. It creates an avenue for both countries to push areas of comparative advantage forward. Discussions are geared towards deepening existing relationships, building robust business interaction, partnerships and meeting new investors. Michael Olawale Cole is the President of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He discloses that Nigeria's trade with Vietnam accounts for almost 10 percent of its total volume with Africa. This says is a clear reflection of Nigeria's position as one of the biggest trading partners with Vietnam and the largest economy in the continent. Vietnam enterprises need to explore more opportunities because now these are the best of times for Vietnam. We are now in a government that is very, very determined to grow economy. The SECI boards who hold strongly that private sector is synchronized to trade development believe that business and trade between both countries have seen significant growth in the last decade. From this forum, we reflect on our remarkable journey of trade, commerce and bilateral cooperation that has prioritized leadership between our two countries. The Ambassador has tried ordinary of Vietnam, but who is happy other business relationships between Nigeria and its country. He tells Ogadrin that infrastructure between Nigeria and Vietnam are not competitive but complementary. This year, the trade value turnover between our two countries reached nearly 500 million US dollars, which is being very, very moderate, in which Vietnam exports Nigeria which is 150 million dollars and imports from Nigeria which is more than 300 million US dollars. Hong expressed worries over insecurity in Nigeria. His stress is the need for both countries to create favorable conditions for business communities. Business environments in Nigeria I think is getting better and better. But to the Vietnamese businessmen, I think they are still reluctant because first thing is the security. Here the security situation is still in a very, very not so good condition. Some participants speak on their take home from the forum. This sort of forum provides information for Nigerians about Vietnam, what they can do in Vietnam. And it also provides information for Vietnamese in Nigeria. The Nigerians will know what to do in Vietnam. So I think this sort of interaction should be encouraged. Being formed will not be deformed because what the ambassador was telling us today was very interesting. He was telling us about the integrity of what opportunities one can explore in Vietnam. In 2022, Nigeria and Vietnam agreed to strengthen bilateral relations, particularly in the areas of digital economy, telecommunications, agriculture, especially cashew nut processing and trade, among others. Love Ikuku Uyiduku, Plus TV News. Coming back from that report. An agency banking solution allows banks to expand their region, provide financial services to customers who may not have access to traditional banking channels such as those living in rural areas or low income households. I am now being joined by the National Public Relations Officer of the Association of Mobile Money and Bank Agents of Nigeria Amban, Uyua Shagu, the lead bidder. Good morning to you Shagu, thanks for joining us on Business Insight. Good morning Justin and I'm happy to be here this morning. Alright, there's a whole lot to talk about agency banking and Nigeria has actually followed that trend over time. Even with more regulation from the central bank of Nigeria. Let me just get the current scenario of agency banking. Can you give us an overview of how it's going so far in the country? Well, the journey has been very interesting. Especially since the beginning of the year, the attention that the agency bank is getting now, occasioned by the cash crunch and the alternative channels for sourcing of cash that the agency bank created during that period has really opened the eyes of many engineers to this sector. And you can bet that right now agency banking is gaining more traction. Many people are coming to it. And even banks now will, before now, show out, they just want to stick to their conventional and old ways. Beginning to also venture into this area to see how they can take advantage of what the sector provides and how often hover. And again, you have many businesses now who, before now, only get payment for their goods and services via cash. Also adopting alternative channels and it has also grown their businesses. So this sector is gaining more and more people are getting into the financial inclusion space. Many people are getting included in the financial spectrum of the country. So it's an interesting time. All right, since agency banking regulation was proposed by the Central Bank of Nigeria, over time there have been more regulations. Visa V, KYC, know your customer. How has that really been, how has that really impacted on the operations of agent bankers and, of course, AMBEN? What the CBN has done is to tear the different account-opening processes. There are some accounts that you can still open without BVN. You can still do a minimum of $20,000 daily on such accounts. And there are two to three that if you have some other requirements provided, the accounts can still be open for you. So this has also broken down the process of account-opening, which was, before now, had to be a very long process with a lot of documentations. But for now, if you do not have any means of application, at least you can still have some level of financial services as part of what you can provide. And as you upgrade such accounts, you begin to have more access and more means of transacting via the different platforms. So it is a win-win for the players in the industry. So we know everybody has a place in the financial space. Okay, let's talk about some new trends in agent banking and let us know how far the use of technology, such as mobile banking and digital platforms have actually impacted on your operations. Tell us more. I think there's enough space. Let us look at some of the trends that have actually occurred in agent banking, specifically the increasing use of technology, such as mobile banking and digital platforms. How have all of that been able to impact on your businesses? And specifically, have you really had challenges with maybe internet operation with members and all of that? Well, I think, like I said earlier, the currency occasioned by the cash crunch LNEA has made many of the financial institutions, the banks and the mobile money operators, to really build more on their infrastructure. Because that is the point which this app and every other channel can really show. And so what they have done, and most of them have realized that they need to invest more on the international technologies, especially when the kind of people they need to employ. However, that has also been amped by the recent trend in exodus of many, many fine hands in these areas out of the country. The passenger must have also affected, which means that there are few hands. And of course, that sector again still demands that we have more people to come in and take opportunities. So when people say there are no opportunities or job opportunities in the country, there's an area that people can really tap in, get their skills, get their skills on and then they are opportunities. So now I know that there are some financial institutions that if they see even 10 tech guys today, they will employ them and pay them well. And so because it's an area that most of the banks are trying to build on, they now realize that yes, it is bank has gone beyond the brick and mortar that we used to know. It is now, the brick and the mortar has been removed. We now have against banks with soft structure where you can easily go to. And what has made this possible is the infrastructure that has been built. The banks share infrastructure that has been used to ensure that customers are able to transact seamlessly without issues. Yes. Good thing you mentioned that the banks earlier we talked about infrastructure telecoms and all of that. But so far how is the relationship between bank agents and those traditional banks to ensure financial inclusion? Is it seamless so far? We are not there yet because some of the STC agents as their competitors unfortunately, which is not supposed to be, we are supposed to complement each other. So we have situations where there are disputes, attendent locations and the bank staff tell the customer that they don't have any issue with them. They should just go back to wherever they did the transaction on and then start it out. That is not supposed to be. We are partners in this business. And as soon as they realize these that the more they stay away or try to isolate a dispute of agents like these, it's going to impact on how customers also see them. Because customers now realize that when they have some of these authentic channels, I don't want to begin to mention names now, they get faster and seamless services and if they have issues, they can even complain on the app and make calls without having to see anybody and the issues will be solved for them. So some of them use more of these alternative channels, more now. And the banks need to also add a few of them already seeing these and already coming to the space and trying to also blend. And I believe it's a good thing for them because they are able to realize this. Okay, let's start. Since we've talked about opportunities, let's look at some threats and let's look at some challenges right now. There's this issue of lack of trust and understanding among potential customers, issue of security concerns and potentials for fraud. Can you just elucidate? Yes, like every other innovation and any other government in any country, there's always the counterfeit. I think the guys out there believe it's an opportunity for them to use what is happening now, the detraction that the sector is getting to take advantage of all suspecting customers or the public. So we understand that and in the last couple of months there has been a whole lot of people who gets different kinds of messages and then they launch on those information, release fighter information and from there their funds were being edited and they were left through the situation. And now we realize that and what I see that the players in the industry, the operators especially are doing is to constantly build on what they have to ensure the buffer, the security and the infrastructure and continually educate their customers on how vital some information, personal information are and they should know it is to unauthorize personnel and most importantly they should ensure that they keep... Right, we still have Shegu a little bit earlier. I will try and get him back to him because there's a whole lot to talk about concerning this issue of trust and security which should be addressed and also there is another talk of difficulty in scaling up and maintaining a large network of agents limited access to capital and resources for bank and agent. It goes on and on. There's a whole lot to talk about but we'll take a break and see who can reconnect with Shegu. Shegu, are you there now? I'm here. We lost you at some point. I was just recapping some of the challenges that bound them in that sector. Aside from this issue of fraud and security, there's also the difficulty in scaling up and maintaining a large network of agents. How do you think that can be addressed? Yeah, it still bothers on what I just said. It is the responsibility of the providers and the banks to ensure that they constantly build on the current infrastructure that they have. I think in this regard, you can have the confidence that most of the financial, technology-driven financial institutions that we have in this country are really good at this and those that were caught me up in earlier in the year where the banks, socials, everything was just about deposit and delight. These guys are really in for business and they are not resting. They are constantly building on infrastructure, ensuring that every one or two customers they have on their platform is catered for and they have seamless experience, best of experience using their platforms. Alright, so Shegu, if I should just put it succinctly now, what does the future hold for agency banking in Nigeria? It's a lot. For those that can see beyond what they are currently doing, I mean agents out there, for those that can see beyond the cash-in cash-outs we draw and deposit that they do, they will see that there's a lot of opportunities that we can tap into. Recently, the Minister for Humanity Affairs was on one of the sister stations and said the cash-palleted that are going to t-shirts are going to be done through agent bank networks and that is a plus for us. It means that for every agent in their different areas they are still getting traction and getting opportunities to work. And more of also in Agro, we have opportunities there. We have agents in rural areas who can help farmers to take their products and using their platform. It also depends on these different financial institutions to see these opportunities. I'm going to say more beyond here. I'm not going to say more beyond here because it's something that if we see its heroes, players in the industry that want to take advantage of some of these things, we can talk with them. Alright, thank you so much, Shegu. And a whole lot on that will be discussed when Amban holds them in its national conference sometime next month. Thank you so much, Shegu, for your time. Shegu is the national PRO of Amban. That's the Association of Mobile Money and Bank Agents in Nigeria. Thank you so much for all that you have said on the show this morning. I appreciate it. Thank you for having me, Justin. Thank you. Just before we go on the show. Nigerians and indeed Africans have been encouraged to harness and promote daily mutual solutions to cater to indigenous demands. The advice was given on the sidelines of a graduation sermon for Nigerians who underwent training on semiconductor designs by Chip Lab. Details and this report I'll see you again next time. Bye for now.