India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Nigeria over the weekend, making him the first Indian leader to visit in 17 years. He met with Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, who invited him as part of Nigeria’s efforts to attract investment from major world economies.
During their Sunday meeting at the presidential villa in Abuja, the two leaders agreed to work more closely on maritime security, intelligence sharing, and fighting terrorism. They also discussed ways to improve economic ties, defence cooperation, healthcare, and food security.
The countries plan to work together to protect shipping routes and fight pirates, which is important because both face security challenges in the Gulf of Guinea and the Indian Ocean.
Nigeria, which has Africa’s largest population, wants to attract more Indian investment and favourable loans to boost its economy and create jobs. The effort seems to be working – at last year’s G20 summit, Nigeria secured almost $14 billion in investment promises from Indian companies. One major deal involves Jindal Steel and Power, which plans to invest $3 billion in Nigeria’s steel industry.
Indian businesses already have a strong presence in Nigeria, with over 200 companies operating there. After his Nigeria visit, Modi planned to head to Brazil for this year’s G20 summit.
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