President Muhammadu Buhari met with Nigerians living in Kigali, Rwanda, on Saturday and praised them for their achievements both at home and abroad.
In order for the economy to flourish, he claimed that the government is open to accepting contributions and investments from fellow citizens who have experience abroad.
In conjunction with the 26th Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, the President addressed Nigerians living abroad in a town hall meeting (CHOGM).
“It is a great pleasure for me to be in Kigali, Rwanda, and to meet with you, the Nigerian Diaspora, as part of my regular meetings with Nigerians whenever I travel to other nations.
Let me start by congratulating and praising Yewande Adebowale for placing among the top four winners of the Commonwealth Youth competition at the Kigali Startup Festival 2022 at the Commonwealth Youth Forum.
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The Lakshmi Subramanian CMU-Africa Student Excellence Awards for Masters in Information Technology and Electrical and Computer Engineering, respectively, were given to Esther Olanrewaju and Favour Aderinto, who I also congratulate.
The speaker said, “I am proud of you all and I remain ever proud of our Nigerian youths excelling, at home and abroad.”
In addition to praising the professionalism of Nigerians in Rwanda and the cordial way in which they interact with one another, the Nigerian leader stressed the importance of upholding the laws of the host country in order to protect Nigeria’s reputation.
You are our ambassadors-at-large while you are here, so keep that in mind. Your actions and activities would help the world read and understand Nigeria.
Our government is committed to collaborating with Nigerians both at home and abroad to grow our economy and build a country that is successful, peaceful, and meets the needs of its people.
In order for all Nigerians, whether they are at home or abroad, to feel safe and realise their full potential, he continued, “We are also working diligently to protect them.”
President Buhari noted that the creation of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) has allowed Nigerians living abroad to seamlessly contribute to national development, particularly in the area of economic investments.
The following industries, among others, are waiting for your contributions and investments: agriculture, housing and real estate, ICT, healthcare, education, and services.
He urged them, saying, “Let me urge you to key into NIDCOM programmes to make your contributions,” and added that they should keep upholding Nigeria’s positive reputation by abiding by local laws.
Ambassador Aishatu Musa, the Nigerian High Commissioner to Rwanda, informed President Buhari that the country’s 400 Nigerians were “in various fields like banking, agriculture, education, telecommunications, and others” and that they were “generally well behaved.” They also said that the population had increased from 100 to 400 over the past few years.
Professor Umaru Wali, a Dean at the University of Rwanda and a native of Sokoto State, was also mentioned as the President of the Association of Nigerians.
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The following Nigerians interacted with the President during the event, which was organised by Chairman of NIDCOM, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa: Favour Aderinto and Esther Olanrewaju, winners of the Lakshmi Subramaniam Excellence Award; Uduak Udoh, the head of an architectural consultancy; Muyiwa Omololu, the managing director of Rope Ways Transit, a company that manufactures cable cars;
The ministers for foreign affairs, youth, and sports development, Mr. Geoffrey Onyeama and Chief Sunday Dare, were both present at the event.
