Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
Nigeria is to review its foreign policies to reflect current global realities, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama has said.
Onyeama at a press briefing with journalists in Abuja said its been a long time the country reviewed its foreign policy direction and that inputs would be taken from critical stakeholders before the changes are made to existing policies.
He stated this at the end of the 7th virtual Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari.
He said the review would be done during an all Nigerian stakeholders meeting planned by the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
“With regards to changing the foreign policy direction of the country, we need to have an all Nigerian meeting of stakeholders to look at our foreign policy, review it, and to see in which direction it should be going. So, we have started that process of organising this. We have held some seminars and we are putting in place the mechanism for doing that. It will be very inclusive because we are inviting all stakeholders to get their inputs,” he said.
Onyeama, who gave the scorecard of his ministry in past one year, said Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) were used at bilateral levels with many countries to enhance investments into Nigeria as well as create jobs.
Meanwhile, Minister of Special Duties and Inter-governmental Affairs, George Akume, has said that plans to establish 774 cottage industries across the country had reached an advanced stage.
He said the project was in line with the current administration’s policy of moving 100 million Nigerians out of poverty.