Nigeria and Brazil have taken major steps to expand their longstanding partnership, as President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva signed a series of landmark agreements covering trade, aviation, agriculture, investment, and security during Tinubu’s State Visit to Brazil.
The two leaders, in a joint statement issued after their meeting in Brasília, described the visit as a milestone in Nigeria–Brazil relations, which were formally established in 1961 and have deepened significantly in recent years.
Key highlights of the visit included the signing of a Bilateral Air Services Agreement and its Memorandum of Understanding to boost connectivity, trade, and tourism. Other memoranda were signed on political consultations, diplomatic training, and cooperation in science, technology, and innovation.
Both leaders emphasized the urgency of expanding bilateral trade and welcomed the Brazil–Nigeria Business Forum, the third this year, as a vital platform for investment. Nigeria committed to approve certificates for Brazilian exports of apples, beef, and poultry genetics, while Brazil pledged to complete a Pest Risk Analysis to enable imports of Nigerian sesame and hibiscus.
On agriculture, Tinubu and Lula reaffirmed support for the Green Imperative Program (GIP) and fertilizer cooperation, with Brazil already Nigeria’s largest buyer of urea. They also welcomed new financial and trade cooperation agreements linking the Nigerian Bank of Agriculture, Brazilian Development Bank, ApexBrasil, and Nigeria’s NIPC and SMEDAN.
Security cooperation was also strengthened, with Brazil set to open a Federal Police Liaison Office in Abuja by year-end. Both countries agreed to deepen collaboration against transnational crime, including drug trafficking and human trafficking.
The leaders further underscored shared commitments on climate action, UN reform, South-South cooperation, and maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea. They also reaffirmed support for COP30, to be hosted by Brazil in November 2025, and the launch of the Tropical Forest Forever Facility.
President Tinubu’s visit, they agreed, marked a new chapter in Nigeria–Brazil relations, anchoring stronger economic, security, and diplomatic ties between Africa’s largest economy and Latin America’s biggest nation.
