VP Shettima lands in India to represent Tinubu at BRICS summit

Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in New Delhi, India, to represent President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the 18th BRICS Leaders’ Summit.

Shettima is leading a high-level Nigerian delegation to the summit, where Nigeria is expected to seek stronger trade, investment and diplomatic ties with BRICS member and partner countries.

The Vice President is also expected to advance Nigeria’s interests in key areas including trade, agriculture, technology, artificial intelligence, industrial development and the digital economy.

The summit, themed “Building Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability,” will bring together leaders of BRICS member and partner countries, as well as representatives of invited international organisations.

Nigeria’s participation is expected to provide an opportunity for the country to strengthen economic partnerships and explore new areas of cooperation with major emerging economies.

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, disclosed Shettima’s arrival in a statement on Friday.

According to the statement, the Vice President’s participation forms part of Nigeria’s efforts to deepen bilateral relations, expand trade and investment opportunities and strengthen cooperation with countries within the BRICS framework.

Shettima’s delegation includes 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.

Speaking ahead of the summit, Odumegwu-Ojukwu said Nigeria would use the gathering to explore fresh partnerships and opportunities in agriculture, technology, artificial intelligence, trade, the digital economy and other critical sectors.

The Foreign Affairs Minister 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”, she said.

Oduwole, on her part, said the Tinubu administration was working to deepen Nigeria’s trade relationship with India, which she said had previously stood at about $14 billion.

She disclosed that major investors of Indian origin had indicated interest in meeting the Nigerian delegation during the summit, noting that Nigeria also maintains significant trade relationships with several other BRICS countries.

According to her, strengthening the relationships would support the economic objectives of the Tinubu administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

“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 will join other leaders for high-level deliberations on inclusive global growth, resilience, innovation and sustainable development.

The Vice President is also scheduled to hold bilateral engagements aimed at advancing Nigeria’s economic and diplomatic interests, particularly in trade, investment, agriculture, technology, industrial development and other areas of mutual benefit.

Nigeria became a BRICS partner country in January 2025 and has since used the platform to strengthen South-South cooperation and broaden relations with major emerging economies.

The Nigerian delegation will also participate in the BRICS open session and other activities on the sidelines of the summit.

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