The Federal Government has commended Nigerians living in the United States for their resilience, patriotism, and continued commitment to Nigeria’s development, as diaspora groups pledged stronger collaboration with government authorities.
The commendation came during a joint virtual meeting organised by the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) in collaboration with the Nigerian Centre, Washington, which brought together government officials and leaders of Nigerian diaspora organisations across the U.S.
Speaking at the forum, the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, acknowledged the security challenges confronting parts of the country but stressed that unity and cooperation, rather than blame, are required to address them. He urged Nigerians at home and abroad to work together in confronting insecurity and insurgency.
Gbajabiamila drew lessons from how the United States responded to the September 11 attacks, noting that national cohesion played a critical role in overcoming the crisis. According to him, Nigerians must rise above ethnic and religious divisions to confront shared challenges.
In his remarks, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, cautioned against describing Nigeria’s security situation as “genocide,” describing such claims as misleading. He said the country’s challenges are rooted in complex regional conflicts and warned that mischaracterising the issues would result in ineffective responses.
Tuggar identified factors such as the collapse of Libya, the failure of the EU–Sahel strategy, and past restrictions on arms sales to Nigeria as contributors to the current security situation. He reaffirmed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s commitment to the administration’s 4D foreign policy agenda of Democracy, Development, Demography and Diaspora.
Also speaking, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NiDCOM, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, described the engagement as critical to strengthening understanding between the government and Nigerians abroad. She said all inputs from the discussions would be documented and presented to the President through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The event was moderated by Gbenga Ogunjimi of the Nigerian Centre, Washington, who emphasised that the Nigerian diaspora remained a key stakeholder in the country’s diplomacy, noting that global engagement must go beyond government-to-government relations.
Representatives of about 15 Nigerian diaspora groups across the United States pledged to support Nigeria whenever called upon and called for the continuity of the forum. They also advocated clearer issue identification and more strategic, Nigeria-focused lobbying mechanisms to address the nation’s challenges.
