Tinubu receives German President Steinmeier at Aso Rock Villa

Tinubu  receives German  President Steinmeier at Aso Rock  Villa.


President Bola Tinubu  received German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier  at Aso Rock Villa, Abuja, on Wednesday  morning.
Steinmier, who arrived in Abuja on Tuesday  evening, met the  president at the  villa's courtyard at about  11:06am (local time) on  Wednesday.
He is accompanied by a business delegation  comprising CEOs and  senior board members of some of Germany's most successful IT, high-tech and  energy companies.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
Upon arrival, the German leader was greeted with  the playing of his country's anthem and the Nigerian  national anthem, followed by an inspection of the  guard of  honour mounted by the Presidential  Guard Brigade. After the 21-gun salute, Tinubu  took Steinmeier  to his office for  a closed interview.
In a statement  released on Monday, the German  embassy said Steinmeier will meet Tinubu as well as the  chairman of the  Economic Commission of West African States,  Dr Alieu  Touray.
He will then  travel to Lagos, where he will  speak to business representatives, visit a start-up  center and meet members of  Nigeria's cultural sector and civil society,  such as Dr. Nike Okundaye and  Professor Wole  Soyinka.
"There will also be an opportunity to  visit the city of Lagos and gain  insight into the urban development of a megacity, including environmental and social  challenges," the statement  said.
Steinmeier is the second German leader to visit Nigeria in 14 months and the third European leader to visit the West African  nation since the  start of the Russian-Ukrainian war in February  2022. German Chancellor Olaf  Scholz visited the country on October 29,  2023 for  a two-day working  visit, during which he met  with business leaders in Lagos  the following day.
At Scholz's invitation, Tinubu attended the G20  Compact with Africa Economic  Summit last  November.
Wednesday's meeting continues  more than six decades of diplomatic relations between the two countries,  maintained by high-level visits dating back to  1978, when  Chancellor Helmut Schmidt visited  Nigeria.
In November 2008, former President Umaru Yar'Adua  hosted German President Horst Koehler in  Abuja.
In addition, former Chancellor Angela  Merkel was the first head of state  from outside Africa to visit Nigeria after  the election of Goodluck  Jonathan in  2011. In 2016,  President Christian Wulff's visit to Nigeria  resulted in the signing of several agreements in  sectors such as energy, trade and  culture.
Nigerian leaders have also  visited Germany.
In November 2003,  President Olusegun Obasanjo visited the European  giant.
President Jonathan also visited Germany for a three-day working visit in April  2012.
In his first trip to a  non-African country, President Buhari attended the 41st G7  Summit in  Elmau. During this period, the two  countries have  concluded several agreements and  bilateral cooperation, particularly in  the field of energy and  electricity.
Of particular note is the  agreement that President Buhari signed  in 2019 with German energy company Siemens to  produce at least 25,000 megawatts of electricity for Nigeria's  power grid by  2025.
Nigeria has also leveraged Germany's expertise in renewable energy,  including solar and  wind, which benefits from technology transfer and capacity  building.
In 2022, Nigeria exported  €1.9 billion worth of oil to Germany, according to the United  Nations' COMTRADE international  trade database.
Germany also exported goods to Nigeria,  worth €1.1 billion, with machinery and electronic components being the  largest imports. Tinubu and Steinmeier are expected to  address the press after the closed-door talks.