[SPECIAL REPORT]
I recall former MoS External Aff airs, Anand Sharma was
sent as a special envoy in connection with Indo-US Nuclear
deal to seek Nigerian support at the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA). During the meeting, President
Yar’Adua in his opening sentence itself conveyed his
country’s support to the Indian cause and agreed to speak
to their other African friends. Apparently, he had an Indian
Professor in college, whom he often remembered on the
occasions of our meetings.
Business: The Key Driver
Trade and Economic relations have been the fulcrum of
our bilateral ties. Nigeria is one of the key players in our
energy security. India is largest buyer of crude oil in the
Nigerian market, importing almost 8 to 12 percent of its
petroleum requirements from the African country. India and
Nigeria are each other’s largest trading partners as well. Also,
over 35000 strong Indian diaspora population contributes
to Nigeria’s national development. Indian industrialists and
businessmen, many of them being third or fourth generation
tycoons, have been prominent in Nigeria’s industrial journey.
In fact, K. Chellaram & Co., Nigeria’s prominent FMCG
importers, established their presence as early as 1923 in the
country. Similarly, Chanrai family has well assimilated into
the Nigerian milieu like scores of other Indian diasporas.
President Obasanjo told me on more than one occasion that
Indian companies were the second largest employers in Nigeria
after the Federal Government, a fact we acknowledged in public
as well. At present, over a hundred companies are operating in
Nigeria that are owned and/or operated by Indians or Persons
of Indian origin. Prominent among them being Bharti Airtel,
Indorama Corporation (Indonesia PIO), Olam International
(now Singapore registered), Tata Group, Bajaj Auto, Birla
Group, Kirloskar Group, Mahindra & Mahindra, Ashok
Leyland, NIIT, Aptech, New India Assurance, Bhushan Steel,
KEC International, Skipper Nigeria, Dabur, Godrej Group,
and Primus Super Speciality Hospital, besides another 15
prominent companies in the Nigerian Power Sector. Nigeria’s
pharmaceuticals, steel and power transmission, and automotive
sectors are dominated by Indian companies. Nigeria-based
ethnic Indians are economically active in areas relating to
consumer goods manufacturing and retailing, construction, and
air services. Several agreements and institutional arrangements
are in place to ease the fl ow of trade and investment between the
two countries and in the African sub-region. Several business
delegations have been exchanged and CII plans on leading
another such delegation in near future.
In order to expand trade and investment, India extended a
Line of Credit worth $100 million for three power projects:
16 • Nigeria-India• 2018
(i) Enugu, $40 million; (ii) Cross Rivers, $30 million; and
Kaduna, $30 million. Nigeria is short of power, and produces
just about 7000 MW which is higly insuffi cient for the
most populous country in Africa. Hence, India can play a
greater role in its infrastructural development, including the
renewable energy sector, especially solar power.
Security Cooperation
India-Nigerian defence cooperation is over fi ve decades
old. India helped set up the fi rst Nigerian Defence Academy
in 1964 and continued to provide training instructors till
1973 until it became fully functional. India continues to
provide training slots and tailored training modules for the
Nigerian armed forces. Several senior Nigerians, including
Presidents Obasanjo and President Buhari, have been trained
at Indian defence institutions and hence, share a deep personal
attachment with India. An MoU for Defence Cooperation was
signed during the visit of PM Manmohan Singh that activated
the bilateral defence and security cooperation, including in the
anti-piracy and maritime cooperation, with primary focus in
the fi eld of counter-terrorism, sea piracy, intelligence sharing,
and exchange of visits between various training institutes.
The fi rst meeting of the Joint Defence Cooperation Com-
mittee (JDCC) was held in New Delhi in April 2013, and the
second was held in Abuja in May 2014. In addition to that, India
off ers about 200 training slots under the Indian Technical and
Economic Cooperation (ITEC) programme to help the country
through capacity building across various sectors ranging from
IT to parliamentary aff airs. Also, a large number of Nigerians
study in Indian universities and technical institutes.
Cyber Security is yet another area of essential bilateral
cooperation and could be enhanced further; Nigeria was an
active participant in the Pan Africa e-Network initiative for
e-governance, telemedicine, and tele-education.
India is the largest democracy in the world and Nigeria is
the largest nation in the African continent; both the countries
have similar views on international issues and India continue
to champion the cause of the developing world at the Global
stage. India and Nigeria suffer greatly from terrorism
and religious fundamentalism, and could work together
towards early passage of the Comprehensive Convention on
International Terrorism (CCIT) for comprehensive guidelines
on counter-terrorism measure. With respect to our history of
mutual trust and aff ection, we can conclude with the belief that
new heights in India-Nigerian relations remain to be scaled.
.
*The author is the former Ambassador of India to Jordan,
Libya and Malta and served as Dy High Commissioner of
India to Nigeria during 2005-08.