The Minister of Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama has said that President Muhammadu Buhari’s visits abroad have had positive effects on “three priority areas” – security, anti-corruption and economy.
He said the federal government does not plan to reduce the number of embassies and high commissions abroad despite cash crunch.
According to him, the 119 embassies will continue to exist but efforts will be made to reduce the cost of running them.
The minister spoke with newsmen in Lagos when he inspected the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), a parastatal under his ministry.
He vowed to help restore NIIA to one of Africa’s leading think-tanks, saying: “We need to give you the wherewithal to succeed.” He urged the institute to help articulate Nigeria’s foreign policies through informed analysis and publications.
NIIA Director-General, Prof Bukar Bukarambe, said the minister had demonstrated willingness to revamp the institute by approving funds to clear all its debts.
He took the minister on a tour of the institute including its ICT centre and library, where the minister learned that only 55 volumes were added in over a year due to lack of resources.
On benefits of Buhari’s travels, Onyema said: “There are three immediate, concrete dividends from his trips. One is security. He was able to galvanise neighbouring countries after election to joining the multinational joint task force, and they were able to tame the tide of terrorism posed by Boko Haram. That was one concrete benefit.
“Also, some countries had lost faith and confidence in Nigeria and had stopped supporting us. Through his visits to those countries, the President was able to convince them about the credibility and bona fides of his administration. Many of them are now sharing equipment and intelligence with us, which they weren’t doing before.
“On the governance side, he just attended a summit in London. He managed the put the issue of corruption at the top of international agenda.
“So, a lot of countries that have been benefitting from corrupt practices are now coming together, behind our President, to trace those funds stashed away illegally in other countries and to help us with their recovery.
“On the economy, he has been able to mobilise, through his visits, countries like Qatar, China and others to commit to more investments in the country. We need foreign direct investment (FDI). Every country in the world is looking for FDI, even the United States. So we have to fight for a piece of the action.”
On whether embassies will be reduced, he said: “We’re looking more at rationalisation. We still believe that we can cut cost through all kinds of ways and do much more targeted manning of those embassies. But, if there are one or two or three that are totally useless, then we might close those ones.”
Onyeama said his ministry has created a database, one-stop shop through which Nigerian businesses can sell to the 119 countries where Nigeria has embassies and missions.
He said the government was also working with a few other African countries to boost the economy through free movement, as, according to him, “the level of intra-Africa trade is really low.” Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
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