Nigeria’s Vice-President Kashim Shettima has reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the multilateral trading system.
Speaking during a meeting with the WTO Director-General, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, on Saturday in New Delhi, India, on the sidelines of the ongoing BRICS Leaders’ Summit, Shettima said that no country could achieve sustainable prosperity by isolating itself from the global community.
He assured that Nigeria would continue supporting the WTO’s efforts to strengthen multilateralism and promote international cooperation.
“I believe the world is greater than one nation. We will continue to support the WTO in championing the cause of multilateralism,” he said.
Shettima stressed that countries were increasingly interconnected and needed one another to achieve sustainable economic development.
“We are essentially one human family and interconnected. You cannot divorce yourself from the global community,” he said.
The Vice-President also highlighted migration as an important driver of development, innovation and economic growth across countries.
He said that migrants had historically contributed significantly to the development of nations and major cities around the world.
According to him, 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 cited the Nigerian diaspora as evidence of the contribution migrants could make through education, entrepreneurship and professional excellence.
Shettima said that Nigerians living abroad had continued to distinguish themselves across various fields and contribute positively to their host countries.
He cited recent Pew Research Centre analysis of 2024 US Census Bureau data on Nigerian-born Black immigrants in the United States.
“Sixty-seven per cent of Nigerian-born Black immigrants aged 25 and above in the United States held at least a bachelor’s degree.
“It is the highest proportion among the major Black immigrant groups examined,” the Vice-President added.
Shettima commended Okonjo-Iweala for her leadership of the WTO and urged her to continue using her experience to advance global development.
“You are doing a very wonderful job at the WTO, but you still have a lot to contribute to humanity,” he said.
GIK/APA