Akande Presents Credentials to Swedish King, Sets Stage for Stronger Nigeria-Sweden Ties

By: Michael Mike

Nigeria’s Ambassador to Sweden, Lola Akande, has formally assumed her diplomatic responsibilities in the Scandinavian country, presenting her Letters of Credence to King Carl XVI Gustaf at the Royal Palace in Stockholm.

The ceremony, held on Wednesday, marked the formal accreditation of Akande as Nigeria’s representative to the Kingdom of Sweden and opened a new phase in bilateral engagement between the two countries.

Akande was accorded ceremonial honours, including a corps marshal and formal procession, in keeping with Sweden’s diplomatic traditions, before presenting her credentials to the Swedish monarch.

The presentation of Letters of Credence is a key diplomatic procedure through which a receiving state formally recognises an ambassador as the accredited representative of the sending country.

Following the ceremony, a reception was held in Akande’s honour at the Nigerian House in Stockholm, bringing together members of the diplomatic community, government officials, business leaders and Nigerians resident in Sweden.

Those in attendance included ambassadors and members of the African diplomatic corps, officials of the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, members of the Corps of African Women Ambassadors, Swedish nationals, representatives of the Swedish business community and other invited guests.

The reception provided an opportunity to celebrate the ambassador’s accreditation and highlight the longstanding relationship between Nigeria and Sweden, as well as opportunities to deepen cooperation.

Areas identified for enhanced engagement include trade and investment, innovation, cultural exchange and people-to-people relations.

Akande’s formal accreditation comes as both countries continue to explore avenues for strengthening bilateral ties, with expectations that her tenure will promote closer engagement between Nigerian and Swedish institutions, businesses and communities.

The development also signals renewed diplomatic attention to the Nigerian community in Sweden and the broader prospects for expanding cooperation between Africa’s most populous country and the Nordic nation.

Akande Presents Credentials to Swedish King, Sets Stage for Stronger Nigeria-Sweden Ties

NIS enrols 2,296 Nigerians in first week of UK passport intervention

By: Michael Mike

The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has enrolled 2,296 applicants in the first six operational days of its Special Passport Intervention Exercise in the United Kingdom, with the Manchester Centre recording the higher number of enrolments.

The exercise, which commenced on September 7, 2026, recorded 1,709 applicants at the Manchester Centre and 587 at the London Centre, as Nigerians with confirmed appointments continued to turn out for passport services.

Daily enrolment figures across the two centres stood at 245 on September 7, 401 on September 8, 396 on September 9, 429 on September 10, 406 on September 11 and 419 on September 12.

The Service said the sustained turnout reflected steady progress in the processing of applicants with confirmed appointments, adding that passport production and dispatch for those already enrolled had commenced and were progressing steadily.

As part of efforts to ensure effective oversight and quality service delivery, the Comptroller-General of the NIS, Kemi Nanna Nandap, undertook working visits to the intervention centres in Manchester and London.

The visits, according to the Service, were aimed at assessing the exercise firsthand, engaging with members of the Nigerian community and ensuring that the intervention provided efficient, responsive and seamless passport services to applicants.

The NIS said the exercise would continue at both centres, assuring applicants with confirmed intervention appointments of service.

The Service said it appreciates members of the Nigerian community in the UK for their patience, understanding and cooperation, urging all applicants to continue working with officials on the ground to ensure the smooth and efficient delivery of the intervention.

NIS enrols 2,296 Nigerians in first week of UK passport intervention

China’s $2.3bn Nigerian Buy-Up: Beijing Opens Bigger Market for Abuja

By: Michael Mike

Nigeria may be on the verge of a major shift in its trade relationship with China as the Asian economic giant imported almost $2.3 billion worth of Nigerian goods in just six months, marking an almost 80 per cent increase over the same period in 2025.

The sharp rise, disclosed by the Chargé d’Affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria, Zhou Hongyou,on Thursday in Abuja, comes as total trade between both countries surged by 75 per cent year-on-year to $18 billion.

The figures are significant for Nigeria, which has long struggled to translate its enormous agricultural, mineral and manufacturing potential into sustained export earnings.

Zhou, speaking at the Nigeria-China Food Festival at the China Cultural Centre, said Beijing’s zero-tariff policy for African countries with diplomatic relations with China presented Nigeria with an opportunity to dramatically expand its exports to the Chinese market.

“This is a great chance for Nigeria to expand exports to China,” the diplomat declared.

The statement effectively puts the spotlight on Nigeria’s ability to exploit preferential access to one of the world’s biggest consumer markets at a time when the Federal Government is under pressure to increase non-oil exports, generate foreign exchange and create jobs through expanded domestic production.

The nearly $2.3 billion already purchased by China from Nigeria in the first half of the year suggests that demand exists. The bigger question, however, is whether Nigerian producers can scale up production, meet international standards and consistently supply the Chinese market.

The latest development also gives fresh significance to efforts to diversify Nigeria’s trade beyond crude oil.

For decades, Nigeria’s export earnings have been heavily dependent on petroleum, while China has emerged as one of Nigeria’s most important trading partners. The latest figures indicate that the relationship is expanding beyond the traditional pattern of trade and could provide a platform for Nigerian agricultural products, processed foods, solid minerals and manufactured goods to gain wider access to China.

Zhou said the growing economic relationship was being matched by increasing cultural and people-to-people exchanges, noting that 2026 marks 55 years of formal diplomatic relations between Nigeria and China.

He urged both countries to deepen cooperation in education, culture, technology, the arts and youth affairs, arguing that stronger people-to-people ties would help sustain the bilateral relationship for future generations.

The Chinese envoy’s remarks came against the backdrop of the Nigeria-China Food Festival, where food was used to demonstrate the potential of cultural exchange and the economic value of Nigeria’s culinary heritage.

Representing the Minister of Arts, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, the Permanent Secretary, Abdulkarim Ibrahim, said Nigeria’s food industry represented a major economic opportunity, particularly through tourism, hospitality and job creation.

He said food and beverages constituted the largest subsector of Nigeria’s tourism economy and called for greater Nigeria-China collaboration in gastronomy, tourism, hospitality, culinary education and creative entrepreneurship.

The Director-General of the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism, Aare Abisoye Fagade, said Nigeria’s diverse culinary traditions could be transformed into a globally competitive food-tourism industry if properly packaged, standardised and commercialised.

The event also demonstrated the potential of cultural diplomacy, with Nigerian and Chinese artistes combining traditional Nigerian drums with Chinese percussion instruments.

The National Troupe of Nigeria’s Director-General and Artistic Director/CEO, Hajia Kaltume Bulama Gana, said such collaborations could deepen mutual understanding and open opportunities for Nigerian artistes to perform in China.

Former NIHOTOUR Director-General, Alhaji Munzali Dantata, who studied in Beijing decades ago, also urged stronger cooperation, particularly in education and cultural exchanges.

But beyond the colourful displays of food, music and culture, yesterday’s event highlighted a far bigger economic proposition: Nigeria now has an expanding Chinese market, and the scale of future gains will depend largely on what the country can produce and export.

With Chinese imports from Nigeria already approaching $2.3 billion in six months and bilateral trade reaching $18 billion, the emerging challenge for Abuja is to ensure that the growth translates into more Nigerian-made products, stronger local industries, foreign-exchange earnings and jobs rather than merely higher volumes of trade.

For Nigeria, the opportunity presented by Beijing’s zero-tariff policy could therefore become a test of whether the country can finally convert its vast productive capacity into sustained export power.

China’s $2.3bn Nigerian Buy-Up: Beijing Opens Bigger Market for Abuja