The Nigerian Government has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening bilateral relations with the Republic of Sweden in areas including capacity building, technological innovation, energy, water resources, climate change, and digital development.
Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Bagudu, made the announcement during a courtesy visit by the Swedish Ambassador to Nigeria, Ms Anna Westerholm, to his office on Monday.
Bagudu expressed gratitude to the Ambassador for the partnership and Sweden’s willingness to support Nigeria through training programmes and strategic projects.
He said, “We are a federation, we will offer project preparatory support to our nationals and resilient opportunities to support them in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the present administration.”
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The Minister also called for investment-ready projects, emphasising that Nigeria is a constitutional market economy with plans to achieve private sector-led growth across infrastructure, energy, water resources, and digital innovation.
Ms Westerholm commended the Ministry for its pivotal role in coordinating budget and national development plans to advance Nigeria’s socio-economic progress. She explained that the visit aimed to understand the country’s vision and needs for the coming years in order to propose concrete steps for support.
She added, “Our vision for development cooperation should be beneficial to both countries. As such, practical, tailor-made programmes will be developed through sustainable project preparation and investment readiness, translating into bankable projects.”
Dr Deborah Odoh, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, highlighted the long-standing partnership between Nigeria and Sweden, which has lasted over 64 years, and expressed hope that it would continue to grow.
Both sides pledged to formalise their cooperation through bilateral agreements, marking the start of collaboration in key sectors such as infrastructure, energy, water resources, and digital innovation.