Vice President Kashim Shettima has touched down in New Delhi to stand in for President Bola Tinubu at the 18th BRICS Leaders' Summit, as Abuja works to convert its partner-country status into concrete trade and investment wins with India and other emerging powers.
He heads a heavyweight delegation that includes Foreign Affairs Minister Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Trade and Investment Minister Jumoke Oduwole, Communications and Digital Economy Minister Bosun Tijani, and Environment Minister Balarabe Abbas Lawal, alongside other senior officials. The summit runs under the banner of resilience, innovation, cooperation and sustainability.
Nigeria's presence at the gathering reflects a broader strategy: turn BRICS membership into real economic gains through fresh investment, wider market access and closer ties with fast-growing economies outside the traditional Western bloc.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu said ahead of the trip that Nigeria wants to explore partnerships with India spanning agriculture, artificial intelligence, technology and the digital economy, pointing to India's success in deploying tech to engage its youthful population as a model worth studying.
Oduwole, meanwhile, said trade between the two countries has historically touched around $14 billion, and that the government is working to rebuild and strengthen that relationship. She noted that Indian investors have already signalled interest in meeting the Nigerian team during the visit, with talks also expected with other BRICS members. A key priority, she added, is boosting India's purchases of Nigerian crude, restoring a market that was once a major outlet for the country's oil exports.
Beyond commercial talks, Shettima is billed to join wider BRICS discussions on global growth, resilience and sustainable development, plus one-on-one meetings aimed at advancing Nigeria's interests in trade, agriculture, technology and industrial growth.
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Nigeria became a BRICS partner country in January 2025, a status that opened the door to deeper South-South cooperation and stronger diplomatic and economic engagement with major emerging markets. The delegation is also expected to join the BRICS open session and other sideline events during the summit.

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