Nigeria and Germany have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral relations, with renewed emphasis on trade, investment, renewable energy, education, security and regional stability.
The commitment was made during a meeting in Abuja between Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, and Germany’s Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs, Johann Wadephul.
Welcoming the German delegation, Ambassador Odumegwu-Ojukwu described Germany as one of Nigeria’s key strategic partners in Europe and commended its continued support for Nigeria’s development and regional peace.
“Nigeria is committed to expanding cooperation in renewable energy, digital innovation, artificial intelligence, critical minerals, agriculture, manufacturing and infrastructure,” she said.
The Minister also praised Germany’s support for ECOWAS in promoting regional integration, peacebuilding and security, stressing the need for stronger international partnerships to tackle terrorism, violent extremism and other global challenges.
“We encourage greater participation by German businesses in Nigeria’s priority sectors as we continue implementing reforms to build a more competitive and investment-friendly economy,” she said.
In his remarks, the German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul described Nigeria as Germany’s longstanding strategic partner, noting that diplomatic relations between both countries span more than 65 years.
According to him, “Germany remains Nigeria’s largest bilateral trading partner in Europe, with trade growing by 10 per cent in the past year.’
Wadephul said the Nigeria-Germany Business Forum would further boost trade and investment, adding that more German investors are expected to explore opportunities in Nigeria.
He also reaffirmed Germany’s support for ECOWAS in addressing terrorism and violent extremism in West Africa and pledged continued collaboration to strengthen the strategic partnership between both countries.
