Nigeria, China mark 50 years of diplomatic relations

Nigeria and China will on Wednesday host an online gala performance to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between both countries.

Tagged “Share the Moment Together”, the event is organised by the ministry of Culture and Tourism of China and the ministry of Information and Culture of Nigeria.

The online gala consists of three parts: Chinese culture, Nigerian culture, and friendship between China and Nigeria. They will be jointly performed by artists from Chinese and Nigerian performing art troupes.

The gala performance, according to a statement, will not only showcase the beauty of traditional Chinese dance and music, but also displays the passion and vigour of Nigerian songs, dance, and beats. The two cultures add radiance and beauty to each other, and together voice a poem of friendship for diplomatic ties and for a better future.

The gala performance will be broadcast on the Voice of China, CCTV.com, China Culture.org, the Nigerian Television Authority, Africa Independent Television, StarTimes Guide at 7 pm and StarTimes Sino Drama at 8:30 pm on February 10.

Hu Heping, Chinese minister of Culture and Tourism, and the director-general of the National Council for Arts and Culture of Nigeria (NCAC), Olusegun Runsewe, on behalf of Lai Mohammed, Nigeria’s minister of Information and Culture, shared their goodwill messages.

Hu Heping said “this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Nigeria, ever since which we have achieved a progress featuring wholesomeness, stability and geniality.

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“Especially since Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed building a closer China-Africa community with a shared future at the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in September 2018, there has been a fast development of the bilateral cooperation in the regards of economy, culture, and public security, etc. and this development has come to its full fruition.

“In 2020, facing the unexpected COVID -19 pandemic, China and Nigeria have been supporting each other and fighting against the pandemic side by side. As such, the traditional friendship between the two peoples deepens, epitomizing the endeavours for deeper China-Africa cooperation”.

Runsewe, the DG of the National Council for Arts and Culture of Nigeria (NCAC), on behalf of the minister of Information and Culture of Nigeria, Lai Mohammed, said, “China and Nigeria demonstrated their commitment to a robust and healthy partnership on commercial cooperation in view of the China-Africa relationship.

“Since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1971, China and Nigeria have been partnering in culture, security, commerce, and other social areas, which has given a very strong tide to making our two countries share in the diplomatic relationship. The Nigerian people will always give valuable support for the Chinese-Nigerian relationship. The performance has given a platform for celebrating the best of both countries, on which he would like to extend congratulations.”