From Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja
The Nigerian High Commissioner to the Republic of India, Ahmed Sule, has presented his Letter of Credence to the President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind.
The presentation which took place through video conference, included presentations from the Apostolic Nuncio of the Holy See to India, Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli; Ambassador of the Republic of Austria to India, Mrs Katharina Wieser and the Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to India, Mr Chang Jae-bok.
In his remarks, Sule conveyed the good wishes of President Muhammadu Buhari to the President of India.
Sule also used the occasion to call for increased bilateral relations between India and Nigeria, particularly in the areas of economy and security.
‘During the presentation ceremony, I used the opportunity to convey the fraternal greetings of HE President Muhammadu Buhari to the President of India and extend on behalf of the people of Nigeria, best wishes to the Government and people of India.
‘I mentioned that Nigeria and India enjoy very warm and friendly bilateral relations spanning several decades and being the biggest economy in Africa, the country has huge investment opportunities in areas such as agriculture, mining, manufacturing, energy, information and communication technology and pharmaceuticals.
‘I invited Indian companies to take advantage of Nigeria’s endowed potentials and invest.
‘I also used the opportunity to reiterate the need to sustain the Joint Defence Consultative Committee meeting between Nigeria and India in furtherance of our mutual Defence cooperation, as well as the Joint Development of Mine detector between our Defence Ministries through the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), India, and the Defence Research and Development Bureau of Nigeria,’ Sule said.
Sule further emphasised that such collaboration should be sustained and encouraged by both sides.
‘I also talked about the recent Dialogue on Counter-Terrorism at the National Security Advisers level, the first to be hosted by India with any African country as a welcome development.
‘Lastly, I requested for continued collaboration with the relevant government authorities of India to explore other areas of mutual cooperation between our countries,’ Sule also said.
Speaking earlier, President Kovind said Nigeria is India’s largest trading partner in Africa and expressed satisfaction with the level of bilateral cooperation between Nigeria and India at various fora.
The President of India also used the ceremony to convey his good wishes to President Buhari and recalled his visit to India in 2015 as memorable.
He added that two Nigerian presidents were alumni of Wellington Defence College, India and reaffirmed the deep-rooted relationship between India and Nigeria.
President Kovind congratulated the envoys on their appointment and conveyed his good wishes to them for a successful tenure in India.
President Kovind added that India’s engagement at the United Nations and other multilateral fora has resulted in mutually beneficial partnerships.
He stated that India remains committed to a just and equitable global order, keeping in mind, the interests of the developing countries and under-represented.