From 18 to 20 October, Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen, and Commissioner for Energy, Kadri Simson, will be in Nigeria to boost the EU-Nigeria partnership.
The visit will be an opportunity to deepen the bilateral partnership, discuss regional priorities ahead of the upcoming European Union – African Union Ministerial on 20 November 2023 and launch the Global Gateway campaign in Nigeria, as well as several digital, energy and connectivity programmes part of it.
The Commissioners will meet with their Nigerian counterparts as well as with several representatives of ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States), including the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Touray, to discuss the regional context and broader geopolitics and also sign a number of financing agreements.
More specifically, on 19 October, Commissioners Urpilainen and Simson will hold a joint strategic dialogue with the Nigerian Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Bagudu, and other relevant ministerial counterparts to discuss EU-Nigeria cooperation and tangible deliverables under the EU's Global Gateway strategy, the EU's positive offer for delivering trusted and sustainable connections with partner countries. They will also discuss matters related to peace and security, trade, investments and sustainable finance, energy, digital economy, innovation, science and technology and migration.
During the visit, Commissioner Urpilainen will also hold exchanges with young people in the context of the expected launch of the Education and Youth Empowerment project for Western Nigeria. Together with Commissioner Simson, they will meet opinion leaders, Tony Elumelu, and other private sector representatives and the Nigerian Youth Sounding Board.
On 19 October, Commissioner Simson will meet with the Nigerian President's Special Adviser on Energy, Olu Verheijen, and visit the ECOWAS Energy Information System. She will also visit the N-LNG facilities on the Bonny Island on 20 October.
Audiovisual coverage of the visit and meetings will be available on EbS.
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Details
- Publication date
- 18 October 2023
- Author
- Directorate-General for Energy