The new Consul General of Germany in Lagos, Daniel Krull, has pledged to deepen economic, cultural, and academic cooperation between Germany and Nigeria.

Mr Krull, who assumed office in August, spoke during a news conference on Monday at the German Consulate in Lagos.

He described Lagos as Nigeria’s economic hub, saying he felt prepared for his role, having previously served as Germany’s ambassador to Ghana.

Mr Krull said a priority is to strengthen people-to-people exchanges between both nations.

He noted that improving visa services remained central to the consulate’s work and reforms were underway.

According to him, the consulate processes over 10,000 visas yearly, and visa counters will be doubled to fast-track applications.

He said external service providers would soon support specific visa categories while a diploma verification system was being developed.

He stated, “We are trying to serve our Nigerian customers better in the future.”

Mr Krull emphasised that boosting economic relations remained key, describing Nigeria as Germany’s largest trading partner in West Africa.

He said more could be achieved in commercial cooperation between both countries.

The envoy expressed optimism about attracting additional German IT companies seeking skilled talent from Nigeria’s expanding tech community.

He noted this could become a major pillar of bilateral relations.

Mr Krull noted that a German film industry delegation was in Lagos for the African Film Festival, which began on Sunday.

He said the group included filmmakers, intellectual property experts, and equipment companies seeking collaborations with Nollywood.

“This visit marks the first outreach by German movie companies to Nigeria, and we hope for deeper cooperation in film production,” he said.

Mr Krull added that Germany also plans to expand scientific cooperation and strengthen partnerships between universities in both countries.

He highlighted Germany’s support for the Museum of West African Arts in Benin City.

The museum, funded with about €6 million from Germany, will feature the Nigeria Imaginaries Exhibition previously shown in Vienna in 2024.

“There is a wide basket of promising areas of cooperation, and I hope to act as a facilitator across sectors,” he said.
(NAN)