• Urges Nigeria to establish free trade agreement with EU

Finland has joined other countries to demand that Africa be duly represented in the United Nations Security Council, offering its full support for that cause.

This was at the Ambassador’s Forum, titled Nigeria-Finland Relations, organised by the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), yesterday in Lagos.
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Ambassador of Finland to Nigeria, Sanna Selin, stated that the competition for Nigeria’s attention is fierce, as many countries are trying to get it.

Ambassador Selin also charged the Nigerian government to establish a free trade agreement with the European Union, which she said would give access to all EU countries simultaneously, provide a lot of predictability for foreign companies to invest in Nigeria, thereby leading to reduced cost of products.

She explained that one of her visions as an ambassador was to bring both countries closer together, highlighting the existing potential in Nigeria that could be harnessed.
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She emphasised that Finland was not here to teach Nigerians what to do but to share experience, as Nigerians know what is best for the country.

The Director General, NIIA, Prof. Eghosa Osaghae, reiterated that both countries have long enjoyed beneficial relations, especially in education, trade and the digital economy

He explained that the programme was organised to deepen our understanding of Finland as a country, as well as the understanding of Nigeria’s relations with Finland and, through those lenses, see what the future looks like for both countries.

According to her, Finland is a model country in several respects, stating that the memorandum of understanding signed between the two countries earlier in the year on the digital economy has the potential to help Nigeria in digital governance, digitalisation, AI, technological growth and development.