Nigeria’s Foreign Minister Calls for Bridge-Building Between Europe and Africa at Spain’s Ambassadors Conference
Nigeria’s Foreign Minister Calls for Bridge-Building Between Europe and Africa at Spain’s Ambassadors Conference
By Jerry Adesewo
Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, has urged Europe and Africa to reject isolationist impulses and embrace a renewed ethic of good neighbourliness anchored in shared history, geography, and responsibility.
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Ambassador Tuggar made the call while delivering a keynote address at the 2026 Annual Conference of Spanish Ambassadors in Madrid, attended by 182 Spanish ambassadors. Speaking under the theme “Good Neighbourliness: Building Bridges or Building Walls,” he described Europe and Africa as parts of a single geopolitical space, separated less by distance than by perception.
The Nigerian foreign minister argued that the Mediterranean has historically served as a connector rather than a divider, linking peoples through trade, labour, and economic exchange long before the modern international system. He recalled Africa’s central role in the making of the modern world, citing the trans-Saharan gold trade of the 14th century and early Atlantic commerce in sugar and palm oil, and urged that present-day relations be understood within this shared historical context.
Against this backdrop, Tuggar proposed that Africa be recognised alongside Europe and Ibero-America as a constitutive element of Spain’s wider historical identity, noting enduring interdependence across the regions.
On migration, he acknowledged the sensitivity of the issue but cautioned against fear-driven policies. While reaffirming Nigeria’s opposition to irregular migration, he warned that the weaponisation of anti-migrant sentiment and the securitisation of labour mobility have had destabilising effects in the Sahel. He cited Spain’s circular migration arrangements with African countries as a pragmatic and humane model, rooted in longstanding seasonal labour patterns familiar across West Africa.
Tuggar further argued that externally driven policies that criminalise migration in transit countries have undermined local economies, empowered traffickers, and contributed to political instability and insecurity, without achieving reductions in migration.
Highlighting Nigeria–Spain cooperation, he pointed to joint initiatives on migration management, police training, and the fight against human trafficking and smuggling. He described Spain as offering a constructive model for Europe through engagement-focused approaches, including Africa-oriented development strategies and dialogue-based partnerships.
On development, the minister warned that Africa’s marginal share of global trade remains inconsistent with its population size. He said continued dependence on exporting raw materials while importing manufactured goods entrenches underdevelopment and fuels economic pressures that spill across borders. Development finance and value addition, he argued, should be viewed as investments in shared stability rather than acts of charity.
Tuggar also addressed the shrinking space for diplomacy amid rising militarisation and polarised domestic politics, calling on diplomats to resist simplistic security narratives and to defend dialogue, compromise, and long-term thinking.
On democratic governance, he referenced Nigeria’s role in launching a Regional Partnership for Democracy with the United Nations Development Programme, aimed at addressing democratic backsliding and unconstitutional changes of government in parts of West Africa. He said the initiative recognises the need for democratic systems to reflect local histories, cultures, and stages of development.
In closing, the foreign minister urged Spain’s diplomatic corps to act as advocates of good neighbourliness within Europe and globally, arguing that in a world increasingly tempted by walls and withdrawal, effective statesmanship lies in building bridges demanded by history, geography, and common interest.
Nigeria’s Foreign Minister Calls for Bridge-Building Between Europe and Africa at Spain’s Ambassadors Conference