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Nigeria has reaffirmed its support for the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the multilateral trading system, with Vice President Kashim Shettima declaring that no country can achieve sustainable prosperity by isolating itself from the global community.
Shettima said Nigeria would continue to support the WTO in promoting a global economic order founded on cooperation and shared prosperity rather than isolation.
The Vice President spoke on Saturday when he met the WTO Director-General, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, on the sidelines of the ongoing BRICS Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi, India.
“I believe the world is greater than one nation. We will continue to support the WTO in championing the cause of multilateralism. We are essentially one human family and interconnected. You cannot divorce yourself from the global community,” Shettima said.
According to a statement signed by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications (Office of the Vice President), Stanley Nkwocha, the declaration comes as Nigeria seeks deeper economic partnerships and investment opportunities through its participation at the BRICS summit, while also advocating a more inclusive international economic system.
Shettima also linked global economic development to migration, arguing that the movement of people across borders has historically contributed to the growth of nations, cities and economies.
“Nations are built by immigrants. Even cities are built by people who came from outside, not just by the locals. That goes to show that we have so much to gain from global migration,” he said.
Using Nigerians abroad as an example, the Vice President highlighted the educational and professional achievements of the Nigerian diaspora, particularly in the United States.
He cited a recent Pew Research Center analysis of 2024 US Census Bureau data, which showed that 67 per cent of Nigerian-born Black immigrants aged 25 and above in the United States held at least a bachelor’s degree, describing the figure as the highest proportion among the major Black immigrant groups examined.
Shettima said the achievement demonstrated the contribution Nigerians continue to make to their host countries through education, enterprise and professional expertise.
The Vice President also praised Okonjo-Iweala for her leadership of the WTO, urging her to continue deploying her experience to advance global development.
“You are doing a very wonderful job at the WTO, but you still have a lot to contribute to humanity,” he told her.
Okonjo-Iweala, who became the first woman and first African to lead the WTO, began her second four-year term as Director-General in September 2025.
Meanwhile, Shettima is expected to present Nigeria’s investment opportunities and partnership prospects to leaders of the BRICS alliance on Sunday as the summit continues under the theme, “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.”
The Vice President is expected to use the platform to promote Nigeria as an investment destination while highlighting reforms being implemented under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
He is also expected to stress the administration’s focus on expanding infrastructure, deepening economic reforms and creating sustainable opportunities through private-sector-led growth.
