Nigeria is set to become Qatar’s “strategic partner in Africa” following discussions on agricultural investment and bilateral cooperation between President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and a special envoy from the Gulf state.
During Friday’s meeting at the State House in Abuja, President Tinubu received Dr Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi, Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, who announced that Qatari business leaders would soon visit Nigeria to explore opportunities in agriculture and food security.
“To all the members of the delegation, I want to say a big thank you for coming to Nigeria. We are grateful to God for what we have experienced as partners in progress,” said President Tinubu.
“Let me commend the brotherly relations between Qatar and Nigeria. The Ambassador knows that I take Qatar very seriously. We are willing to go further in our bilateral relations.”
The Nigerian leader praised Qatar’s peace-building efforts globally, noting parallels in regional challenges both nations face.
“I am proud of your efforts to bring peace and stability to the world. Like you, we are sandwiched between the challenge of terrorism and helping our neighbours. We are conscious of who is our friend and those helping us to ameliorate the problems,” he added.
President Tinubu highlighted Nigeria’s ongoing tax system reforms designed to attract foreign investment, acknowledging the difficulty but necessity of recent economic changes.
“We are making efforts to reform our tax system. Our reforms have been hard. I made tough decisions so that we could grow. We are gradually seeing the light at the end of the tunnel,” he said.
The President directed three cabinet ministers to expedite implementation of agreements reached during his 2024 state visit to Qatar, emphasising the potential for enhanced cooperation in agriculture.
“You can’t find a better partner than Nigeria. You have done well in developing a knowledge-based economy in Qatar, but what about Nigeria?”
Dr Al-Khulaifi conveyed the Amir of Qatar’s commitment to deepening ties with Nigeria across multiple sectors.
“We are proud of the level of relations we have reached with Nigeria. Our partnership is not just government to government but also people to people,” the special envoy said.
“We have much to do together in agriculture, food, and petrochemicals. We have some companies telling us that we should create a way for them to come into Nigeria.”
“The message I have from His Highness, Amir of Qatar, is that he wants Nigeria to be a strategic partner in Africa.”
The meeting comes as Nigeria continues to seek foreign investment to bolster its agricultural sector and strengthen food security amid ongoing economic reforms. Qatar, meanwhile, has been expanding its diplomatic and economic presence across Africa as part of its strategy to diversify international partnerships beyond the Middle East region.
