Lagos – The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Jeffrey
Onyeama, on Thursday said that President Muhammadu Buhari’s visits
abroad were to strengthen Nigeria’s goodwill with the governments of other
countries.
Onyeama, who made the clarification in Lagos during his first
official visit to the Nigerian Institute of International
Affairs(NIIA),described president Buhari as a ‘Change Patriarch’,
committed to building goodwill for Nigeria abroad.
“The President has so far been able to generate much goodwill for
Nigeria among other world leaders through his visits.
“Nigeria, therefore, have to begin to leverage on the goodwill
currently being enjoyed by the President in engaging with foreign
partners, to the benefit of our country.
“We have to have very good and well-thought out strategies in engaging
with the outside world. And this is what the President has been
trying to do with his visits,’’ he said.
The minister, who said that his ministry was working at the possibility
of leveraging on the country’s comparative advantage, said that
Nigeria was also working on promoting export trade and foreign
investment.
He also announced the present administration’s plan to “really
leverage” on the presence of Nigeria’s 119 Missions and Embassies
abroad in creating market access to Nigerians.
Onyeama also disclosed government’s plan to actively engage Nigerians
in the Diaspora in marketing themselves, as well as being Ambassadors for
their countries in the 119 countries.
The minister also said that his ministry was looking at possible ways
of getting linkages with organisations like the African
Union(AU), the Economic Community of West African States(ECOWAS) and other
regional organiations.
Onyeama commended the newly-appointed Director-General of the
NIIA, Prof. Bukar Bukarambe, for still sustaining the ideals of the
founding fathers of the institute.
He said that the institute needed to be equipped for the achievement
of its objective of helping government in its foreign policy
formulation and implementation.
The minister also urged the NIIA, as a think-tank for the nation’s foreign
policy, to always be in the frontline of Nigeria’s engagement with
foreigners.
NIIA’s director-general, Prof. Bukar Bukarambe, commended the minister
for his interest and commitment to the realisation of the institute’s
objectives.
Bukarambe said that the minister had always displayed readiness to
work with the institute in the development of the nation’s foreign
policy. (NAN)
