Nigeria and India have agreed to strengthen their economic partnership and work towards restoring bilateral trade to nearly $15 billion, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi calling for renewed purchases of Nigerian crude oil.
The development followed a bilateral meeting between Vice President Kashim Shettima and Modi on the sidelines of the BRICS Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi.
A statement issued on Monday by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, said trade between the two countries reached about $14.95 billion in the 2021–2022 financial year.
However, the volume of trade subsequently declined, largely due to reduced Indian purchases of Nigerian crude, falling to $7.13 billion in 2024–2025.
The statement said bilateral trade recovered to approximately $9 billion in 2025–2026, citing figures provided by the Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Abhishek Singh.
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During the meeting, Modi advocated renewed crude oil purchases from Nigeria, saying stronger energy cooperation could help restore bilateral trade to previous levels.
Responding, Shettima said Nigeria would consider the request as part of the Tinubu administration’s broader efforts to attract investment and establish strategic partnerships that would increase the country’s productive capacity.
The Vice President said Nigeria was particularly interested in cooperation with India in pharmaceuticals, defence, digital technology and the creative sector.
Partnership Targets Job Creation, Skill Acquisition
He said such partnerships should focus on job creation, skills transfer and expanding opportunities for Nigeria’s growing youth population.
Shettima said the Federal Government also wanted to move the relationship beyond the traditional exchange of commodities to investments capable of supporting domestic production and value addition.
The two leaders further discussed cooperation in renewable and clean energy, electricity, healthcare, capacity building, financial technology and other emerging sectors.
The Vice President said the administration was focused on ensuring that international partnerships produce investments, technology transfer, industrial development and tangible economic benefits for Nigerians.
Modi also appreciated Nigeria for providing a conducive environment for the large Indian community living and doing business in the country.
Nigeria, India Agree To Boost Private Sector Participation
Both leaders agreed that increased private-sector participation would be critical to the next phase of Nigeria-India economic relations, particularly in sectors where Indian companies have expertise and Nigeria has growing demand.
The discussions also covered expanded collaboration in fintech and digital technology, building on existing cooperation on digital public infrastructure.
Nigeria and India reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining high-level political and economic engagement through the India-Africa partnership framework and other multilateral platforms.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Women Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, said Nigeria was adapting lessons from India’s women-led self-help group model to improve financial inclusion and grassroots businesses.
She said the model was being implemented through the Nigeria for Women Programme Scale-Up, which uses Women Affinity Groups to connect women with financing, skills and markets.
According to the statement, the initiative is part of the Federal Government’s broader efforts to increase women’s participation in productive economic activities, strengthen social protection and tackle sexual and gender-based violence.
Sulaiman-Ibrahim said women’s economic empowerment was central to the government’s ambition of building a $1 trillion economy, stressing the need to bring more Nigerian women into productive economic activities.
Rafiyat Sadiq is a political, justice, and human rights reporter with Pinnacle Daily, known for fearless reporting and impactful storytelling. At Pinnacle Daily, she brings clarity and depth to issues shaping governance, democracy, and the protection of citizens’ rights.