Nigeria and Thailand, on Wednesday, agreed to deepen bilateral ties across technology, agriculture, commerce, renewable energy, and other areas of strategic interest.

Speaking during a meeting with Thailand’s delegation at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Vice President Kashim Shettima acknowledged the existing cordial relationship between Nigeria and Thailand.

“I believe that our relationship should go beyond transactions in crude oil, rice production and so on.

“So, there is a need for us to review our bilateral relationship at a strategic level.

“Nigeria is a large market. There are enormous opportunities for partnership and investment in agriculture, ICT, renewable energy, and solid minerals, and we have a young population and workforce,” he noted.

Mr Shettima urged the government and people of the Kingdom of Thailand to continue doing business with Nigeria because of its strategic position on the African continent, its demographic advantage, and abundant natural resources.

Earlier, Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister, Yousef Khalawi, who is on his first trip to Africa, praised the ongoing transformation in Nigeria under the administration of President Bola Tinubu.

He described Nigeria as a strategic partner of Thailand, a strong voice in the Global South, and an emerging leader in e-commerce.

He said Thailand was proposing a new partnership with Africa, known as the Thailand-Africa Initiative, aimed at boosting economic ties, business, and people-to-people relations.

Mr Khalawi noted that an important dimension of the initiative was promoting economic cooperation, especially in agriculture, while also exploring Thailand’s strengths in universal health coverage and tourism, among other areas.

“For us in Thailand, we believe that Nigeria is a strategic partner bilaterally and an important window to strengthening ties with Africa, particularly West Africa.”

(NAN)