Nigeria’s President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu has said that he will seek stronger economic ties with the Republic of South Africa, the two major economies on the continent.
This disclosure was made by Chief Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President on media and publicity in New York, during a meeting between the Nigerian President and Cyril Ramaphosa, South African president, adding that African countries must have consensus views on the billions of dollars spent through the international development finance institutions towards meeting the specific needs of the developing democracies in Africa.
President Tinubu is currently in New York to participate in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the 78th edition which started on September 18 through 26, 2023, in the United States of America.
According to Ngelale, the president will also use the opportunity to seek the reforms of the Bretton Woods institutions towards enhancing the resilience of developing democracies across the world.
President Tinubu said: “During the end of the Second World War, the Marshall Plan was established for the reconstruction and economic restoration of European nations through Bretton Woods institutions. Where has this presence been for Africa? We have to be careful not to replace the broken shackle of yesterday with a new set of shackles. You cannot have a stable democracy in the presence of a poverty of knowledge and a starvation of people. Democracy without food on the table is a breeding ground for what will consume us, if care is not taken. We must join hands and agree that International Finance Institutions require reform as Africa is not to be a ground for economic scavenging any longer, but it is a place with gifted people that is ready for investment and cooperation.
“We have all the human and natural resources required between our nations. We can collaborate in a mutually beneficial way that enriches our populations. South African Mining industries have a role to play in the Nigerian solid minerals development sector. Your business community has done well in Nigerian Telecommunications. We have great mineral wealth across our land, and you have good expertise in this area. We expect to deliver jobs and mutually beneficial results in this area as brother and sister countries.”
Responding, President Ramaphosa said the two African nations must work together to create more wealth through cooperation and partnership.
“We are two major economies on our continent, and it is important that we deepen economic ties, particularly in light of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement. We are very keen on the deepening of our economic relations.
“We would love to see Nigeria and South Africa working closely together on a number of issues because whenever we join hands, we have made an impact globally through those joint positions. Together, we can move the global south forward. We are a continent that has been plundered. And wealthy nations made so much of it from us, and we must seek out partners who will help us to advance our own interests,” President Ramaphosa said.
