The Foreign Minister, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, has requested a recalibration of Nigeria’s foreign policy to meet the demands of a global order that changes rapidly.
He made this call while awarding a guest conference entitled “Navigation of realities: Align Nigeria’s foreign policy practice with the emerging global dynamics” at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (Niia), Lagos.
When heading to a audience of diplomats, academics and policy formulators, the ambassador Tuggar praised the Niia for its role of six decades as the country’s intellectual compass in international relations. He stressed that the research and power of the institute had been critical to shape Nigeria’s external commitments from Independence.
The minister reflected on Nigeria’s diplomatic trip, remembering the prominent role of the nation in the liberation of southern Africa countries such as Zimbabwe, Namibia, Angola and Mozambique, as well as their leadership in the global struggle against apartheid in South Africa.
He also highlighted Nigeria’s fundamental contributions to peace maintenance operations in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Sudan and Gambia, and the country’s leadership in the formation of Ecowas in 1975.
Speaking about global changes, Ambassador Tuggar observed that the world is entering a new multipolar order, made up of climate change, artificial intelligence, terrorism, migration pressures and broad inequality.
He drew parallels with the experience of the Cold War of Nigeria, when the country pursued non -alignment, the concert of medium powers and the concentric circles strategy to maintain independence in the midst of superpower rivalries.
In the Economic Front, he reflected on the past struggle of Africa between the Lagos Action Plan and the Washington consensus, emphasizing that Nigeria should avoid repeating past errors of the excessive dependence on exports of raw materials and the policies imposed externally.
Instead, he said, the renewed hope of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is anchored in strategic autonomy, based on the 4DS of foreign policy: democracy, development, demography and diaspora.
Ambassador Tuggar clarified that strategic autonomy is not duplicity, but pragmatism rooted in the size, resistance and moral position of Nigeria. He stressed the centrality of Africa in Nigeria’s diplomacy, citing the African continental trade area (AFCFTA) as a great opportunity for integration and growth, together with cooperative security frames such as MNJTF, Ecowas and the African Union.
He also highlighted Nigeria’s leadership in strengthening democracy, pointing out the launch of the Regional Association for Democracy (RPD), developed by MFA in collaboration with UNDP. The initiative aims to help Western Africa countries consolidate democratic institutions, promote inclusive governance and create platforms for dialogue, even before disagreements.
The minister concluded reaffirming Nigeria’s determination to remain a respected, influential and self -sufficient actor in global affairs, one that builds problems based on problems while keeping his principles of justice, equity and the progress of Africa.
Read too Main stories OF Nigerian tribe
Watch the best Nigerian Tribune TV videos