By Faith Anisiobi, The Sight News
Nigeria and Rwanda have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral relations through expanded trade, investment, regional security cooperation and increased private sector participation.
The commitment was made during a courtesy visit by the Rwandan High Commissioner to Nigeria, Ambassador Moses Rugema, to the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abuja on Thursday.
During the meeting, both countries reviewed the state of their bilateral relations and discussed practical measures to enhance cooperation in areas of mutual interest, including trade, information and communication technology, healthcare, agriculture, defence, peace and security, and capacity building.
Ambassador Rugema conveyed the greetings of the Rwandan government and reaffirmed Kigali’s commitment to strengthening its longstanding ties with Nigeria. He described the relationship as one built on mutual respect, African solidarity and shared aspirations for peace, regional integration and sustainable development.
The envoy stressed the importance of convening the next session of the Nigeria-Rwanda Joint Permanent Commission (JPC), revealing that technical consultations were ongoing to conclude outstanding bilateral agreements. He also proposed the establishment of a Nigeria-Rwanda Business Forum to promote greater collaboration between the private sectors of both countries and leverage opportunities under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Responding, Ambassador Enikanolaiye underscored the need to translate the strong political relationship between Nigeria and Rwanda into tangible economic benefits through increased private sector engagement, expanded trade and greater investment.
He noted that governments should continue to create an enabling environment for businesses to drive sustainable economic cooperation and development.
On regional security, both sides acknowledged the growing security challenges confronting Africa and called for stronger collaboration among African nations in tackling terrorism, violent extremism and transnational organized crime. They agreed that African-led solutions, enhanced defence cooperation and sustained dialogue remain critical to achieving lasting peace and stability on the continent.
The minister also highlighted the importance of sharing experiences in governance, infrastructure development, education, human security and public service delivery, noting that stronger continental cooperation would support the implementation of the African Union Agenda 2063 and the objectives of the AfCFTA.
Both countries reaffirmed their commitment to fast-tracking ongoing bilateral initiatives, including the Joint Permanent Commission and the proposed Nigeria-Rwanda Business Forum, expressing confidence that the mechanisms would boost trade, investment, people-to-people exchanges and broader strategic cooperation.
The meeting ended with both sides expressing satisfaction with the state of Nigeria-Rwanda relations and reaffirming their resolve to deepen cooperation in pursuit of shared goals of peace, security, economic growth and sustainable development.
