The Indian Government has sent its defence minister, Rajnath Singh, as a Special Envoy of the Prime Minister to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the president-elect of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu.
The Indian High Commission in Nigeria disclosed in a statement yesterday that Mr. Singh will arrive Abuja today ahead of the inauguration.
“The visit of Mr. Rajnath Singh reflects the growing bilateral relations between India and Nigeria and signifies India’s commitment to strengthening ties with Nigeria.
“Mr. Singh is accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising senior officials from the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of External Affairs of India. Mr. Singh is the most senior Minister in the Government of India.
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“Sending such a senior Minister to Nigeria as a Special Envoy of the Prime Minister of India reflects India’s commitment to the deep-rooted bilateral relations with Nigeria,” the statement added.
During his stay in Abuja, Mr Singh is scheduled to attend the inauguration ceremony and convey warm wishes and felicitations from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the President-elect.
Minister Singh is expected to have a special message to the president-elect of Nigeria regarding the G20 meeting.
Given its special relations with Nigeria, India had invited Nigeria as a guest country to participate in all the G20 meetings during her G20 Presidency in 2023.
The G20 summit 2023 will be held in New Delhi on 9-10 Sep 2023 with the Heads of States of the member countries and invited guest countries.
