Prime Minister Modi’s two-day trip to Nigeria’s capital, Abuja on November 16-17 constitutes the first leg of his transcontinental foray into summit diplomacy, which will also see him attending G20 summit in Brazil on November 18-19 and then visiting Guyana.
This trip offers a valuable opportunity to advance India’s growing cooperation with Africa and the Global South. It comes on the heels of the Indian President’s recent visit to three African countries.
By picking Nigeria, PM has recognised this nation’s unique significance as Africa’s most populous nation and its fourth-largest economy. India has enjoyed close historical ties with it, as well as a “strategic partnership”. However, the relationship is a work in progress, requiring a strong political push, especially as Nigeria is a regional and continental powerhouse
Given its rich civilisational legacy, the Commonwealth connection, and its strong belief in unity amidst ethnic, religious, and linguistic diversity, Nigeria has much in common with India. After struggling with a disastrous civil war and a cycle of military coups, Nigeria succeeded in building a democratic polity from 1999 onwards.
The nation admires India’s classic path of ‘democracy with inclusive development’, drawing it to the country. Thanks to the excellent work of Indian teachers and traders in the past, the two peoples are familiar with each other, with Bollywood being another factor that has brought them closer.
Modi will become the fourth Indian PM to visit Nigeria, after Jawaharlal Nehru (1962), Atal Bihari Vajpayee (2003), and Manmohan Singh (2007). The gap of 17 years since the last prime ministerial visit is notable, but it was punctuated by the visit of Vice President Hamid Ansari in 2016.
The commonalities and complementarities between the two countries make them natural allies. Betting on Africa’s economic growth and expanding global profile, India needs to cooperate more extensively with Nigeria, which is a member of regional groupings like ECOWAS and OPEC.
India recognised Nigeria’s global significance by inviting it as a guest nation to the G20 Summit last year. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who participated in the summit, is reciprocating the gesture by now hosting Modi. Taking the cue, Brazil has invited Nigeria to the G20 Summit this year, and South Africa may do so next year.
Nigeria has, thus, indeed arrived on the world stage. It is especially pleased with India’s leadership role that resulted in the African Union securing permanent membership of G20. Nigeria’s entry into BRICS as a partner state is further proof of its growing heft.
Preparatory work has already been completed to elevate the India-Nigeria relationship. In January this year, India’s External Affairs Minister Jaishankar visited Nigeria to co-chair the Joint Commission meeting and held wide-ranging discussions with key stakeholders. Yet, on the economic side, there are challenges. Bilateral trade has declined from a peak of $14.95 billion in 2021-2022 to $7.89 billion in 2023-2024. This is partly due to India buying Russian oil at a discounted price rather than Nigerian crude from spot markets, and partly due to Nigeria banning rice imports. However, India’s export of engineering and pharmaceutical goods has much potential for bilateral trade. Areas such as agriculture, green energy, healthcare, and digital cooperation also show promise.
In this context, there is need to expand India’s investment commitment of over $27 billion. Development cooperation, too, can be scaled up. Over 200 Indian companies based in Nigeria are regarded as the biggest foreign employers in the country. Besides, the 60,000-strong Indian community has been making a useful contribution to bilateral relations.
Defence ties represent another significant pillar. The National Defence Academy at Kaduna and Naval War College at Port Harcourt are fine examples of defence cooperation between the two nations, buttressed by regular dialogue, exchange of training facilities, and Nigeria’s purchase of Indian defence equipment. Strategic cooperation is now being piloted through a periodic dialogue between NSAs. Ajit Doval recently hosted the latest round.[1] The dialogue focused on forging a close partnership to counter threats from terrorism, extremism, and radicalisation through cyberspace, international crime, arms, and drug trafficking, and a practical programme to enhance maritime security.
During Manmohan Singh’s 2007 visit to Nigeria, four agreements were signed, and an understanding was reached to conclude nine additional agreements. Several of these agreements are nearing finalisation, and a few may be signed during Modi’s visit.
The leaders now need to institute an effective mechanism to monitor progress in implementing all agreements. Greater involvement of apex business chambers should also be encouraged.
Finally, financial support should be extended to universities and think tanks to undertake studies on India-Nigeria relations and ensure the dissemination of such efforts. Greater engagement at the people-to-people level would yield rich dividends in the long term.
Rajiv Bhatia is Distinguished Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies, and a former ambassador.
This article was first published by the Times of India.
References
[1] Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India, “India – Nigeria Strategic and Counter-Terrorism Dialogue,” Nov 5, 2024, https://www.mea.gov.in/press-releases.htm?dtl/38491/India++Nigeria+Strategic+and+CounterTerrorism+Dialogue