Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the President of Nigeria in Abuja
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in Abuja. In this meeting held at Rashtrapati Bhavan many issues were discussed. In the meeting, Prime Minister Modi said that as just said, this is the visit of an Indian Prime Minister after 17 years. It is a great pleasure for me to have the opportunity to visit Nigeria at the beginning of my third term.
Prime Minister Modi said that it is a matter of happiness for me to have the privilege of coming to Nigeria at the beginning of my third term. I am very grateful to you for this. The Prime Minister said that on behalf of 140 Indians, I express my condolences for the loss of lives in the floods in Nigeria last month. India sends 20 tons of humanitarian aid. I congratulate you for your personal commitment to strengthening strategic relations between India and Nigeria.
Prime Minister praised Nigeria’s role
At the meeting, Prime Minister Modi further said that for the first time, Nigeria was included as a guest country in the G20 under the Indian presidency last year. Together we granted the African Union permanent membership of the G20. It is also encouraging that Nigeria has been granted BRICS partner country status. This is indicative of the important role Nigeria has played on the world stage under his leadership.
The Prime Minister said we give high priority to our strategic partnership with Nigeria. There are many areas such as defense, energy, economic issues, technology, health, education and culture in which our cooperation is strong. Many new possibilities are also associated with this relationship. We have been working together to address challenges such as terrorism, separatism or drug trafficking and we will continue to do so.
‘People in the Indian community are an important link in relationships’
He said that more than 60 thousand people from the Indian community living in Nigeria are an important link in our relations and he is very grateful to them for their attention. Our conversations today will add a new chapter to our relationships. We will continue to highlight the priorities of the Global South on a global level. Very grateful to Nigeria for granting him the national honour. This honor is not only mine but also that of 140 million Indians.
