Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in New Delhi, India, to represent President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the 18th BRICS Leaders’ Summit as Nigeria seeks to deepen economic, trade and diplomatic cooperation with member and partner countries of the bloc.
The summit is being held under the theme, “Building Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability,” and is expected to provide opportunities for high-level discussions on global growth, innovation, sustainable development and South-South cooperation.
Shettima is leading a high-level Nigerian delegation comprising the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu; Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole; Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani; and Minister of Environment, Balarabe Abbas Lawal, among others.
Ahead of the summit, Odumegwu-Ojukwu said Nigeria would explore new partnerships and investment opportunities in agriculture, technology, artificial intelligence, trade, the digital economy and other strategic sectors.
She said Nigeria was particularly interested in learning from India’s experience in deploying technology and artificial intelligence to create opportunities for its large youth population.
“India is firm in its expertise in agriculture and, of course, even in the digital economy. In fact, prior to this, we had a session dealing with women in the digital economy and artificial intelligence, and we are leveraging on India’s greatest strength, which is in the engagement of its youth population,” the minister said.
Also speaking, Oduwole said the Tinubu administration was working to strengthen Nigeria’s trade relationship with India, noting that bilateral trade had previously stood at about $14 billion.
She disclosed that major investors of Indian origin had expressed interest in meeting with the Nigerian delegation, adding that Nigeria also maintains significant trade relationships with several BRICS countries.
“And so, deepening those relationships will further strengthen the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration. India used to buy Nigerian oil quite a lot, so we are looking at how to expand that with everything going on in the world,” Oduwole said.
At the summit, Shettima is expected to join leaders of BRICS member and partner countries, as well as representatives of invited international organisations, for discussions focused on inclusive global growth, resilience, innovation and sustainable development.
The Vice President will also hold bilateral engagements aimed at advancing Nigeria’s economic and diplomatic interests, particularly in trade, investment, agriculture, technology and industrial development.
Nigeria became a BRICS partner country in January 2025, giving the country an expanded platform for strengthening South-South cooperation and deepening relations with major emerging economies.
The Nigerian delegation is also expected to participate in the BRICS open session and other engagements scheduled on the sidelines of the summit.
