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Nigeria reiterates commitment to strengthen relation with Jamaica 

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Nigeria reiterates commitment to strengthen relation with Jamaica 

Nigeria reiterates commitment to strengthen relation with Jamaica 

By: Michael Mike

Nigerian government has revealed that mechanisms have been put in place to strengthen the country’s bilateral relations with Jamaica in several mutually beneficial areas.

Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyema disclosed this at the fourth session of the Nigeria-Jamaica Joint Commission in Abuja on Wednesday, while stressing that the Joint Commission is very important as issues bordering on education and cultural cooperation, economic and trade matters, technical cooperation, energy cooperation, migration and others will be discussed. 

The Minister noted that Nigeria is determined to ensure that these joint commissions will not be just an annual or biannual ritual, insisting that they are going to try to put in place mechanisms of monitoring, to ensure that real and practical effects are achieved from the two countries’ agreement.

He said: “It has been far too long for a very important part of the globe for us—the Caribbean—that we’ve gone too far apart.  So, we really want to bring a big push to all the various levels—technical and people-to-people is very important.

“We also need to look at the cultural level where we can drink more Jamaican rum here and export palm wine to them and we export afrobeat and they will give us reggae and calypso, as well as show us how to organize carnivals through technology transfer to have better carnivals. There is so much we can be doing as a people to cement this relationship”. 

Onyeama reiterated that there is a lot that binds Nigeria and Jamaica together, as they are all sovereign countries and as such, still have to put in place mechanisms to strengthen their relationships.

He said: “We are both from the same source and so we are essentially the same people. We are brothers and sisters and we do not see them as just another country with whom we trade and develop relations. For us, they are kith and kin and that’s how our policy towards Jamaica and other countries of the Caribbean is founded on that basis of kinship”. 

He said: “The Minister of Foreign Affairs and the High Commissioner of Jamaica in Nigeria decided that there should be direct people-to-people connectivity and so a couple of years ago, we pushed very much for a first direct flight between Nigeria and Jamaica so that Nigerians can go to Jamaica and Jamaicans can come to Nigeria without having to go through Europe or the united States.

“Although it is one short flight, the impact will really be a giant leap for the relations between Nigeria and Jamaica as well as the rest of the Caribbean. We are actually hoping that Jamaica will be the possible hub for Nigerian flights to the Caribbean.”

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Jamaica, Kamina Johnson Smith, said the joint commission allows the two countries to celebrate and deepen the long-standing formidable and dynamic friendship between Jamaica and Nigeria.

She emphasized that the flight to Jamaica from Nigeria in December 2020 is a small step in the right direction, adding that Jamaica looks forward to exploring prospects in oil and gas, mining, trading in agriculture and non-agricultural products and wider investment opportunities and as such, welcomes the opportunity to explore the potentials to strengthen and deepen the bilateral relations of the two countries in these areas. 

Also Read: 2023 Election: Buhari swears in 6 new INEC commissioners

According to her: “This occasion of course marks the very first time that the meeting of this joint commission is taking place on the continent in Nigeria. Since its establishment over 30 years ago, this joint commission has been a viable and important medium for us to exchange views on issues of mutual interest. 

“We are pleased to have hosted previous sessions of the joint commission in 1999, 2002 and 2014 and we welcome the fact that we are able to meet here in your wonderful country during my first official visit to Nigeria.

“I and my team are committed to ensuring that the mechanisms we put in place will allow for continuous follow-up and implementation to ensure that there are deeds to match the words which will be exchanged during the course of today”

She expressed confidence that the two countries can foster more mutually beneficial frameworks for engagement and commerce and that they will identify new areas for cooperation even as they seek to deepen existing ones. 

“It is worthy of note that Jamaica and Nigeria have maintained active levels of cooperation over the years, notably in health, education, craft development and other cultural fields, as well as tourism and energy”.

Nigeria reiterates commitment to strengthen relation with Jamaica 

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VP Shettima Mourns Late Alhaji Aminu Dantata, Says Nigeria Has Lost An Irreplaceable Institution

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VP Shettima Mourns Late Alhaji Aminu Dantata, Says Nigeria Has Lost An Irreplaceable Institution

By: Michael Mike

Vice President Kashim Shettima has expressed deep grief over the passing of prominent Nigerian businessman and philanthropist, Alhaji Aminu Alhassan Dantata, saying the nation has lost an irreplaceable institution.

The late Dantata, an uncle of Africa’s richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, passed away at the age of 94 in Abu Dhabi in the early hours of Saturday in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to Mustapha Abdullahi Junaid, his Personal Private Secretary (PPS), who confirmed the death.

In a condolence message, Vice President Shettima praised the late businessman for his lifetime of service, describing him as “a living bridge that connected us to our past.

“We have not just lost a leader; we have lost an irreplaceable institution,” Senator Shettima said, describing Dantata as “one of the greatest titans in Nigeria’s philosophical history” whose departure marks the end of a vital chapter in the country’s economic and democratic evolution.

“In African tradition, when such an elderly person transitions, a vital chapter of our history departs with them. He was indeed among the great titans, a living bridge that connected us to our past,” VP Shettima added.

The Vice President extended heartfelt condolences to the Dantata family, expressing hopes that they would “find the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss,” even as he prayed that Almighty Allah would grant the deceased Jannatul Firdaus.

Born into the legendary Dantata family of Kano, Alhaji Aminu built on his father’s commercial legacy to become one of Nigeria’s most influential business figures. His empire spans construction, manufacturing, banking, agriculture, and the oil and gas sectors.

Beyond business, Dantata was renowned for his extensive philanthropic work, funding schools, mosques, health centres, and supporting widows and the underprivileged across Nigeria.

VP Shettima Mourns Late Alhaji Aminu Dantata, Says Nigeria Has Lost An Irreplaceable Institution

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Nigeria-EU Senior Officials Meet in Abuja to Prepare for Upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting

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Nigeria-EU Senior Officials Meet in Abuja to Prepare for Upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting

By: Michael Mike

The Senior Officials Meeting between Nigeria and the European Union (EU) will be held on Tuesday 1st and Wednesday 2nd July 2025 in Abuja to prepare for the upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting and to explore areas of cooperation.

A statement on Saturday by the Press Officer, EU Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Modestus Chukwulaka, read: “The Delegation of European Union to Nigeria and ECOWAS wishes to inform that the Senior Officials Meeting between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the European Union (EU) will be held on Tuesday 1st and Wednesday 2nd July 2025 in Abuja.

“The agenda of the very important meeting is to prepare for the upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting and to explore areas of cooperation.”

According to the statement, the Senior Officials Meeting will be co-chaired by the Regions, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nigeria, Ambassador Janet Olisa, Director, and the Deputy Managing Director for Africa Department, European External Action Service, European Union, Mr Mathieu Briens.

The statement revealed that the agenda of the meeting is expected to entail wide-ranging discussions that would focus on various aspects of the Nigeria – EU partnership, such as: Cooperation on multilateral and regional issues; Peace, Security and Governance; Humanitarian situation; Trade and Investment; Human Development: Health, Education, Social Protection; Science, technology, innovation and digital transition; Migration; Energy, climate change and green economy transition among others.

Nigeria and the European Union share a deep, long-standing partnership inspired by mutual values and interests as well as support for multilateralism and rule-based international order, the statement said.

Nigeria-EU Senior Officials Meet in Abuja to Prepare for Upcoming Nigeria – EU Ministerial Meeting

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Farida Waziri Tasks Benue Leaders to Unite, Act and Save Their People

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Farida Waziri Tasks Benue Leaders to Unite, Act and Save Their People


…. Donates relief materials to displaced persons in Yelwata, IDP camp

By: Michael Mike

Former Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC), Mrs. Farida Waziri has charged former governors, legislators, traditional rulers and other stakeholders in Benue state to set aside rivalry, unite and act with urgency to save their people from incessant attacks and killings.

Waziri, a retired Assistant Inspector General of Police and Principal Partner, Brookfield Chambers Abuja stated this on Saturday 28th June 2025 while donating relief materials to victims of the recent gunmen attacks in Yelwata community and displaced persons at the internally displaced persons (IDP) camp in Makurdi, the Benue state capital.

Some of the items donated under the banner of Women, Youth, Children and Crime Organisation (WYCCO), a non-governmental organization founded by her, include: bags of rice, sugar, tubers of yam and other household items.

She said: “This is no time for division. It is no time for political squabbling or ego-driven manoeuvring. Among us are men and women who have led this state — former governors, legislators, traditional rulers — individuals with influence and authority. The time has come to set aside our differences and stand united, for the sake of the ordinary Benue man, woman, and child.

“That is why I stand here today to make this urgent and heartfelt appeal to our leaders: cast aside rivalry, unite, and act. Act with urgency. Act with purpose. Because what we face now increasingly resembles a deliberate, coordinated effort to erase our people and our heritage.

“We must take heed of the words of Sir Winston Churchill, who once said:
‘Our difficulties and dangers will not be removed by closing our eyes to them.’
Another of Churchill’s warnings is just as relevant to our present predicament:
‘If you will not fight for right when you can easily win without bloodshed… you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all odds against you and only a precarious chance of survival.”

Waziri, while stating that her call was a build up to the earlier proposal by President Bola Tinubu during his recent visit Beforehand Benue, noted that meetings alone would not solve the problem, urging that: “But let us be sincere: peace will not come from meetings alone. To end the cycle of violence, we must confront its roots. Before the Yelwata massacre, communities in Gwer West, Apa, and Guma had already endured weeks of killings, kidnappings, and raids. These horrors did not emerge in a vacuum; they are symptoms of deeper issues.

“We must therefore confront the real causes — ethnic and religious tensions, unchecked banditry, and the rise of cultism as well as the abuse of illicit drugs. These forces must be tackled, along with the herder-farmer conflict, with honesty and courage. We cannot afford to keep going in circles. And there is no room for blame games. Our leaders — and indeed, all of us — must be pragmatic. So today, let us commit, as one people, to healing our wounds, reclaiming our land, and ensuring that never again will a child in Benue grow up in a camp instead of a home”

She said the development in Benue must be of “concern to all sons and daughters of Benue regardless of whether we live within its borders or far away in the diaspora to find out the root cause of these attacks with a view to proferring solutions that will bring an end to these barbaric acts”

Farida Waziri Tasks Benue Leaders to Unite, Act and Save Their People

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