Pursuing Nigeria’s 4-D foreign policy, 2024 review 

Statecraft and the pursuit of national interest through articulated foreign policy goals in an international system of increasing centers of power, concert systems and growing tensions among major global powers must be a priority for every medium power, ambitious and rising state, especially from the global south.

A second year review of Nigeria’s foreign policy under President Bola Tinubu’s government with its Renewed Hope Agenda has been of significant and progressive trajectory with more foreign engagements and visibility in the international system, largely with potential and measurable results.

In pursuing his outlined foreign policy objectives, President Tinubu made a total of 17 official foreign trips in 2024. Leveraging on both bilateral and multilateral engagements bring his tally to 28 foreign trips since his inauguration in May 2023 to the end of 2024.

This has set Nigeria on a lofty trajectory in the attainment of the government’s foreign policy goals as outlined in the 4D foreign policy strategy of President Tinubu’s administration anchored on Democracy, Development, Demography, and Diaspora.

In his New Year broadcast in January, he said, “On every foreign trip I have embarked on, my message to investors and other business people has been the same. Nigeria is ready and open for business.” The president has participated in a variety of engagements during his foreign trips, including summits, conferences, private visits, vacations, bilateral dialogues, and ceremonial events such as inaugurations and independence celebrations. Foreign policy pursuits of the current government also includes bilateral engagements as receiving state in home front at State House and multilateral engagements with several assemblies of the ECOWAS at its Headquarters in Abuja and other multilateral meetings. Vice President Kashim Shettima and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar, robust international engagements attribute to the pursuit of the 4D foreign policy of the Nigerian government.

The president kicked off 2024 with a private visit to France on January 24, and on February 15, he arrived Addis Ababa to participate in the 37th ordinary session of the Assembly of the African Union (AU) heads of states and government. Tinubu joined other leaders in high-level meetings on institutional reforms of the AU; peace and security.

On February 29, he went on a two-day visit to Qatar to further strengthen cooperation between Qatar and Nigeria in the area of economic development, security, and cultural exchange, among others. President Tinubu attended the inauguration of Senegal’s President Bassirou Faye, Africa’s youngest democratically elected president on April 2, he then embarked on an official visit to the Hague, Netherlands to strengthen bilateral ties and explore opportunities for collaboration on April 23.

He travelled to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on April 26 to participate in the 2024 Special World Economic Forum (WEF) on global collaboration, growth and energy for development.

The Forum serves as a platform to bridge the growing North-South divide exacerbated by emerging economic policies, the energy transition and geo-political shocks.

In the second quarter of 2024, President Tinubu continued the government’s foreign policy pursuit by attending the inauguration of President Mahamat Deby on May 23 in N’Djamena, the Republic of Chad.

President Tinubu attended the inauguration of the South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa at the Union Buildings, Pretoria on June 19, 2024 and later during his visit held a private meeting with President Cyril Ramaphosa in Johannesburg, and both leaders underscored the need for stronger partnership between their states.

President Tinubu participated in the African Union Mid-year Coordination meeting in Accra, Ghana on July 20. In his capacity as the chairman of the ECOWAS authority of heads of state and government, he addressed the meeting on the status of regional integration across various regions in Africa and presenting the 2024 report on the state of the community.

The objective of the mid-year forum is for the AU and the RECs to align their work and coordinate their implementation of the continental integration agenda. On August 15, 2024, President Tinubu signed the agreement on gas pipeline for the Gulf of Guinea during his 3-day state visit to Equatorial Guinea. At the dinner held in his honour at the People’s Palace in Malabo, he noted that; “Tribalism has no place in our nation or region. We have to strengthen the continent. Cultivate and maintain peace together and help one another.” On August 19, for his fourth time as Head of State he travelled to France for a brief work stay.

In the last quarter of 2024, in September, President Tinubu met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing and announced to elevate ties to comprehensive strategic partnership and agreed to build a high-level Nigeria-China community with a shared future.

According to him, “we have upgraded the relationship to more than what is just strategic but a comprehensive developmental partnership.” President Tinubu’s official visit precedes his participation in the high level meeting on peace and security at the 2024 Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

President Tinubu as the ECOWAS chairman urged African Leaders to embrace multilateralism and innovation to secure sustainable peace and development. In the bilateral Nigeria-Sino diplomatic relation, President Tinubu encouraged Chinese enterprises to invest in key Nigerian sectors for modernisation and poverty reduction.

Nigeria signed five MoUs with the Chinese firms including with Longi Green Energy Technology Co, Ltd. to advance renewable energy projects. This includes deploying solar panels and sustainable energy technologies to enhance Nigeria’s renewable energy infrastructure. Also an MoU with Chinese company TAILG to assemble electric tricycles locally, promoting sustainable transportation solutions and supporting the growth of the electric vehicle industry.

To be continued tomorrow.

Kelechi is a Research Fellow at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs and a Comparative Foreign Policy Analyst.