At the United Nations headquarters in the United States, Vice President Kashim Shettima engaged in a significant meeting with UN Secretary-General António Guterres, where they explored pivotal topics such as Nigeria’s ambition to secure a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council alongside other shared interests.
According to a statement from his spokesperson, Stanley Nkwocha, Vice President Shettima underscored the importance of the UN endorsing Nigeria’s bid for permanent membership on the Security Council.
The dialogue between the two leaders also encompassed collaborative efforts toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), tackling climate change, enhancing democratic governance within Nigeria and across Africa, and strengthening partnerships with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on regional democracy and security initiatives.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, shed light on the visit by noting the extensive presence of UN agencies operating within Nigeria, reflecting the strong institutional ties between the country and the United Nations.
He further shared that Secretary-General Guterres praised Vice President Shettima for articulating Nigeria’s case for a permanent Security Council seat during their discussions.
Providing additional perspective, Minister of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy, Dr. ‘Bosun Tijani, described the interaction with the UN Secretary-General as warm and constructive.
Dr. Tijani highlighted Guterres’ remarks on the growing importance of artificial intelligence and his anticipation that Nigeria will maintain a leading role in this domain.
“The Secretary-General expressed great enthusiasm when we informed him about Nigeria’s recent launch of the continent’s first government-backed multilingual and multimodal large language model,” Dr. Tijani revealed.
He added, “As we concluded our meeting, Guterres expressed a strong desire for Nigeria to assist other African nations in harnessing AI technology effectively, ensuring the continent remains competitive and benefits from this transformative innovation.”
Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Dr. Yusuf Tanko Sununu, emphasized the productive nature of the talks with the UN Secretary-General, highlighting the Tinubu administration’s commitment to tackling humanitarian challenges and reducing poverty.
“We presented one of the largest national social registries, encompassing nearly 18.9 million households, and shared that over 8.1 million Nigerians have benefited from conditional cash transfer programs,” Dr. Sununu stated.
He also pointed out the government’s initiatives to foster inclusivity for persons with disabilities.
Moreover, both parties exchanged ideas on sustainable strategies to overcome ongoing humanitarian issues.
Dr. Sununu noted the impact of funding cuts to UN agencies on humanitarian efforts, mentioning that the World Food Programme (WFP) currently supports approximately 1.3 million Nigerians with emergency food assistance.
He affirmed that the federal government is actively working to bridge these funding gaps.
The minister revealed that Secretary-General Guterres pledged continued support to enhance the ministry’s operational capacity, validate the national social registry, and secure additional resources for poverty alleviation and intervention programs.
Earlier that day, Vice President Shettima also met with the United Kingdom’s Deputy Prime Minister, David Lammy MP, where both leaders committed to strengthening bilateral cooperation in areas including trade, economic development, defense, and migration management.
