Nigeria-Thailand Relations Must Go Beyond Crude Oil, Rice — Shettima

Nigeria and Thailand have committed to deepen relations between both countries across technology, agriculture, commerce, and renewable energy, among other areas of strategic interest.

To this effect, Nigeria is pushing for a review of existing partnerships between both countries, leveraging Thailand’s comparative advantage in deploying intermediate technology in agriculture and related areas.

Thailand, on the other hand, is proposing a Thailand-Africa Initiative that aims to boost relations between the Asian country and key African countries in people-to-people ties, economic ties as well as economic cooperation, particularly in agriculture.

These are highlights of the meeting between the Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima, and a delegation from the Kingdom of Thailand led by its Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister, H.E. Yousef Hassan Khalawi.

Speaking during the meeting with the delegation on Wednesday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on behalf of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Senator Shettima acknowledged the existing cordial relationship between Nigeria and Thailand.

“I believe that our relationship should go beyond transactions in crude oil, rice production and so on. So, there is a need for us to review our bilateral relationship at a strategic level.

“Nigeria is a large market. There are enormous opportunities for partnership and investment in agriculture, ICT, renewable energy, and solid minerals, and we have a young population and workforce,” the VP noted in a statement by his spokesman, Stanley Nkwocha.

He urged the government and people of the Kingdom of Thailand to continue to do business with Nigeria because of its strategic position on the African continent, coupled with its demographic advantage and abundant natural resources.

Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister Khalawi, who is on his first trip to Africa, praised the ongoing transformation in Nigeria under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, describing the country as a strategic partner with Thailand, a strong voice in the global south and an emerging leader in e-commerce.

He said Thailand is proposing a new partnership with Africa known as the Thailand-Africa Initiative aimed at boosting economic ties, business and people-people relations.

The Deputy Prime Minister noted that the important dimension of the initiative was the promotion of economic cooperation, especially in Agriculture, and exploring Thailand’s strength in Universal Health Coverage and Tourism, among other areas.

“For us in Thailand, we believe that Nigeria is a strategic partner bilaterally and an important window to strengthening ties with Africa, particularly West Africa.”

Other officials present at the meeting were the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Dunoma Umar Ahmed, and The Ambassador of Thailand to Nigeria, Mr. Thirapath Mongkolnavin, among other top officials from the Foreign Affairs Ministries of both countries.