By Rapheal
Copyright thesun
Master’s degree students from the Department of Diplomacy and Strategic Studies, University of Lagos (UNILAG), visited the Consulate General of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in Lagos, yesterday, as part of their practical exposure in learning.
During the visit, the UAE Consul General in Lagos, Salem Aljaberi, described Africa as a unique hub for business investments, stressing that the UAE in 2024 had the second highest FDI ratings in the continent of Africa.
He noted that the Consulate General of the UAE in Lagos was the first in Africa, stressing that Nigeria is one of the Emirates’ most strategic partners in the region, even as Lagos serves as the economic capital.
While disclosing that trade relations between UAE and Nigeria reached $4.3 billion for non-oil commodities in 2024, he maintained that the numbers could be much higher and called for more partnerships.
“You would observe that the UAE was among the top five trading partners in Nigeria in the second quarter of 2025. What we do majorly is to facilitate market access for UAE investments in Nigeria via business to business, business to government and government to government, among others,” he posited.
Noting that the UAE has signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with 11 countries, including Kenya and India, Aljaberi, expressed optimism that a similar treaty would be reached with Nigeria to further simplify trade across frontiers.
Earlier, an Associate Professor of Diplomacy and Strategic Studies, UNILAG, Henry Ogunjewo, stated that the visit provided a rare opportunity to acquaint students with the realities and activities involving bilateral relations, theories and principles learnt in the classroom.
His words: “We teach about economic relations and diverse kinds of relations at the Department of Diplomacy and Strategic Studies at the nation’s first choice university, UNILAG. However, this has been a beautiful outing and these Masters degree students are ready to explore partnerships with the UAE as they bid to become first-class diplomats.”
Noting that the UAE has been too conservative on the laudable work that it is doing in Africa, and in Nigeria, he stated that the public need to know about the level of economic opportunities as well as the cultural and humanitarian aid.
“I believe that a stronger relationship between the Consulate and our students could provide a platform to better understand UAE’s consulate activities in a symbiotic relationship,” the coordinator of the Masters in Diplomatic and Strategic Studies (MDSS) programme at UNILAG, noted.
The event also featured short speeches by the Regional Director of Dubai Chamber in Africa, Khalid Al Ali and the Head of Operations at Tony Elumelu Foundation, Hakeem Onasanya, while the heads of various units of UAE Consulate General provided insights on economic relations, cultural and humanitarian relations, and administration activities.
Speaking on behalf of the students, Chizoba Benson, thanked the UAE Consulate for the opportunity to engage and expressed optimism that more privileges will be extended to partners via research and other diplomatic relations.
