President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio said in Abuja on Monday that Nigeria is determined to forge stronger ties with Australia.
Akpabio made the remarks while hosting to a dinner the visiting Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives, Hon. Milton Dick.
The dinner had in attendance lawmakers, diplomats, administrators and other policy makers.
Akpabio said, “Nigeria is not only welcoming we are also determined to forge a stronger ties with Australia. We have a lot to learn from Australia in the area of mining and steel development.”
“We share a lot in common as federal states. I share a toast to our continued friendship and cooperation between our two nations,” Akpabio said.
The Senate President assured Hon. Dick, who is also aspiring for the position of the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, IPU, of Nigeria’s support.
Akpabio while endorsing the candidature of Dick, noted that the Parliamentarian had devoted considerable time in serving in various organs of the IPU as an executive member.
“I am happy to note that in the affairs of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, our guest is always present. He is someone I always admire in the executive council of the IPU.”
“So when I heard that he was aspiring to be the President of the IPU, I didn’t care whether he was coming from the Asia Pacific region or the Africa Group or where ever he came from. I can attest to his commitment in service.”
“So after extensive consultation with the Speaker, House of Representatives and members of the delegation that I lead, I assure him of the support of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. He will also have votes of our colleagues from the ECOWAS bloc some of whom I have also consulted,” Akpabio said.
The Senate President said the Speaker of the Parliament of Australia had a lot to offer.
“We believe you have a lot to contribute to making the IPU greater than what it is today,” he added.
He identified failure of dialogue as largely responsible for some of the major conflicts in the world today.
“The only group that uses dialogue to address world issues since we don’t have missiles is the Inter-Parliamentary Union. We are partnering with the United Nations to foster peace around the world through parliamentary diplomacy,” Akpabio said.
In his goodwill message, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanlaiye thanked the President of the Senate for hosting the Australian delegation on behalf of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
He disclosed that he had earlier hosted the visiting delegation and discussed bilateral relations between Nigeria and Australia that was expected to lay a foundation for further discussions with the leadership of the National Assembly of Nigeria.
He identified areas of cooperation between the two nations. “Distance need not be a barrier to fostering the kind of cooperation that we seek in critical areas like mining, agriculture, livestock production, forestry management and climate climate action.
“We need to do more to foster greater cooperation between our two nations. Foreign policy cannot be the exclusive preserve of the executive. We believe the collaboration between parliaments which is the cornerstone of the IPU is critical to vibrant foreign policy that focuses on people to people contact. I thank the President of the Senate in this regard,” he said.
Hon Milton Dick said he was very appreciative of the reception he received in Nigeria and said this was a motivation for his aspiration to become the 32nd President of the IPU.
He thanked Akpabio for his support and promised to be a voice for all when elected as the President of the IPU.