Nigeria reaffirms commitment to WTO, multilateral trade at BRICS Summit
Abdullateef Fowewe
Nigeria has reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the multilateral trading system, emphasising that global cooperation remains essential for national prosperity.
This was made known in a statement made available on Saturday by Stanley Nkwocha
Senior Special Assistant to The President on Media & Communications (Office of The Vice President).
Speaking on the sidelines of the BRICS Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi, India, Vice President Kashim Shettima restated the country’s position during a high-level meeting with WTO Director-General Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on Saturday.
“I believe the world is greater than one nation. We will continue to support the WTO in championing the cause of multilateralism.
“We are essentially one human family and interconnected. You cannot divorce yourself from the global community,” Vice President Shettima said.
The Vice President’s remarks underscore Nigeria’s strategic alignment with global trade frameworks that prioritize collective growth over economic isolationism.
Beyond trade, VP Shettima made a compelling case for migration as a critical driver of development, innovation, and economic expansion.
“Nations are built by immigrants. Even cities are built by people who came from outside, not just by the locals. That goes to show that we have so much to gain from global migration,” he explained.
Highlighting the Nigerian diaspora’s global impact, he cited recent data showing that “67 per cent of Nigerian-born Black immigrants aged 25 and above in the United States held at least a bachelor’s degree, the highest proportion among the major Black immigrant groups examined”.
The Vice President also praised Dr Okonjo-Iweala, the first woman and first African to lead the WTO, who began her second four-year term in September 2025.
“You are doing a very wonderful job at the WTO, but you still have a lot to contribute to humanity,” Shettima told her.
On Sunday, September 13, Vice President Shettima is scheduled to address BRICS leaders under the summit theme: “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.”
He will present Nigeria’s partnership and foreign investment opportunities, reiterating President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which seeks sustainable growth through reforms, infrastructure expansion, and private-sector-led development.
The Vice President’s engagements in New Delhi reflect Nigeria’s broader diplomatic push for a more inclusive international order and deeper integration into global economic systems.
