The Belgian ambassador to Nigeria, Pieter Leenknegt, has said that cocoa has overtaken crude oil as the main export product from Nigeria to Belgium since 2024.

Mr Leenknegt stated this at the palace of the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Rashidi Ladoja, during a courtesy visit to the traditional ruler on Tuesday in Ibadan.

He noted that Belgium is quite obsessed with making the right kind of chocolate and would need more cocoa from Nigeria as part of its major raw materials.

“Since 2024, cocoa has been overtaking crude oil as the main export product from Nigeria to Belgium. The fact that the price of cocoa has risen means a good thing for the farmers here because it means that they will be making better livelihoods.

“And it also shows that our commercial relations are diversifying beyond fossil fuels, which is also important if we want to future-proof those relations. There’s something that also makes us proud as Belgians, because the new Olubadan is an alumnus of the University of Liège,” Mr Leenknegt stated.

He expressed his happiness over his reception at the palace, promising to pass a few messages to the University of Liège on Mr Ladoja’s ascension to the throne.

“The Imperial Majesty is fluent in French, and I think that in itself warrants probably a get-together party with what we call the ‘Les Ambassadeurs de la Francophonie,’ the French-speaking ambassadors in Nigeria.

“The club is in Abuja, and they were also thinking of visiting a state, and I think all the arrows are now pointing in the direction of Oyo and Ibadan,” he said.

Mr Leenknegt noted that there were quite a few existing connections between Belgium and Ibadan.

He noted that the University of Ibadan has a collaboration with the University of Ghent, primarily focused on research on mycotoxins and other non-governmental organisation partnerships.

In his response, Mr Ladoja expressed his readiness to host the association of French-speaking ambassadors in Nigeria to create platforms for better networking among French-speaking countries and Ibadan, particularly in harnessing available resources for the development of Ibadanland.

He added that the collaboration would lead to job creation for teeming unemployed youths and save them from drug addiction, which had become a menace in society.

“The responsibilities of a king in the modern era have gone beyond mere glamour and celebration to a call to responsibilities,” he added.

(NAN)