PRESIDENT TINUBU’S VISIT: Tuggar Holds Bilateral Meeting with St Lucia’s Minister for External Affairs
Oru Leonard
Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, held a significant bilateral meeting with Saint Lucia’s Minister for External Affairs, International Trade, Civil Aviation, and Diaspora Affairs, Alva Romanus Baptiste, on the sidelines of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s state visit to Saint Lucia. The meeting aimed to strengthen diplomatic, economic, and cultural ties between the two nations.
Tuggar welcomed the anticipated formalization of diplomatic relations between Nigeria and Saint Lucia, highlighting that this would serve as a vital platform for enhancing bilateral and multilateral collaboration.
The ministers discussed expanding trade and investment relations, focusing on key growth areas such as:
– Agriculture, to enhance cooperation in agricultural practices and technology.
– Tourism, to develope joint tourism initiatives and promoting cultural exchange.
– Manufacturing, to explore opportunities for collaboration in manufacturing sectors.
– Renewable Energy, strengthen cooperation on renewable energy and climate change adaptation.
– Promoting partnership in information and communication technology.
In Technical Assistance, Tuggar proposed a structured partnership between Nigeria’s Technical Aid Corps (NTAC) and Saint Lucia’s Political and Economic Cooperation Development Division, involving:
– Deployment of Experts by Nigerian professionals in sectors like health, education, agriculture, and technical services.
– Capacity Building: Joint initiatives for institutional strengthening and youth empowerment.
– Education Diplomacy: The ministers emphasized the importance of academic exchanges, scholarships, and collaborative research programs to foster people-to-people connections.
– Climate Change: Tuggar stressed the need for cooperation on climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, and access to climate finance, reaffirming Nigeria’s commitment to supporting Saint Lucia as a Small Island Developing State (SIDS).
The meeting concluded with optimism about the growing partnership between Nigeria and Saint Lucia, which is expected to lead to mutual prosperity and greater regional solidarity.
