Please activate JavaScript!
Please install Adobe Flash Player, click here for download
ePaper created 2015-12-01, 11:33:23 | version 1.43.00
‘I FEEL AT HOME in Abuja,’ says Christian Widmann, who has been living in Nigeria’s capital city with his wife for over four years. Widmann, who has a background in economics and banking, oversees a programme for sustainable economic development that supports small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The objective is to diver- sify the economy, as although the country has large oil and gas re- serves, not many people are benefiting from them. ‘We want to support income and employment generation for a considerably larger number of people,’ he says. This task attracted him from the start. ‘The pro- gramme is large and complex, which makes it very challenging.’ In Abuja, he works with national governmental authorities and business associations. He and his team also coordinate the work at local level in three of the 36 federal states and the business metropolis of La- gos. ‘I deal with people from all walks of life, from the Minister of Trade and Investment down to microbusiness owners.’ The leisure ac- tivities on offer are equally diverse, with opportunities to take part in sports such as football, volleyball, tennis, golf and swimming, and chances to eat out at both international restaurants and Nigerian beer gardens, which offer fresh, grilled fish. Widmann deliberately chose a house near his office, and takes the 15 minute walk to and from work every day, even in the dark. ‘In the four years that I’ve been here, I’ve never been in a situation that was even mildly dangerous,’ he says in response to concerns that he often hears from outsiders. BUSINESS promoter GIZ is always looking for experts for its projects. Interested? Why not visit our ‘Jobs and careers’ page: www.giz.de/careers. Christian Widmann, INTRODUCING