David McAllister, chair of the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs, has described Nigeria as a crucial partner of the European Union, saying that the country “matters greatly to the bloc”.

Mr McAllister made the remark in an interview on the sidelines of a reception hosted by Annett Günther, the ambassador of Germany to Nigeria, in honour of a six-member delegation of the European Parliament.

The delegation, comprising members of the European Parliament, is on a working visit to Nigeria from October 26 to October 28.

During the visit, the team will engage with key stakeholders in Nigeria’s democratic process.

Mr McAllister said the visit aimed to better understand Nigeria’s political and economic systems and discuss insecurity challenges affecting the country and its neighbours.

“So we are here to listen carefully and to understand better the Nigerian system, and our message when we return to Brussels while filing our reports to the European External Action Service and the European Commission is that Nigeria matters. But Nigeria matters for us as an important partner; we’ve seen a lot of improvement in our cooperation, but I think there is still more that we can do together.

“That is why this year we have set up dialogue with the Nigerian government on economic cooperation, and that is what our message is, and we were also briefed on the security in the country.

“We are concerned about the threat to the Nigerian people and the integrity of the country in the North, and I was personally not aware of the magnitude of the humanitarian crisis which is unfolding in the North, and that really shattered our delegation, and it’s heartbreaking to see pictures of these poor children. I think it is important that the bloc also give humanitarian assistance that we can to help these people who are in desperate need have hope,’’ he said.

Mr McAllister reiterated that Nigeria’s role as a key partner justified the visit, describing the country as a development and economic partner, as well as a thriving democracy.

According to Mr McAllister, the EU and Nigeria share common values and interests, which make the country an important partner — particularly as a thriving democracy.

MEP Marta Temido, who serves on the Sub-Committee on Human Rights and is vice-chair of the Committee on the Environment, said the visit aimed to learn from and share experiences with Nigeria.

Nigeria matters greatly to the EU, she said, noting that the mission seeks to strengthen existing cooperation through a peer-to-peer partnership with Nigeria and ECOWAS, as both are vital to regional development.

“It is very important to learn from countries like Nigeria, given the many challenges it faces—from ethnic diversity to climate issues.

“Also the extraordinary natural resource challenges which we call the malediction of resources. Sometimes when you have a huge amount of resources, you find problems with corruption with good governance and all that.

“So, it is important for us to understand and to learn, to engage with Nigeria and ECOWAS and to be open to the world as the EU, sharing, learning and understanding,” Ms Temido said.

(NAN)