Vice President Kashim Shettima on Sunday said that Nigeria is seeking to deepen ties with Benin Republic for closer economic integration and coordinated security efforts.
Shettima stated this at the inauguration of President Romuald Wadagni.
He said Nigeria views its relationship with Benin as “strategic” to West Africa’s broader stability and commercial prospects.
Vice President Shettima who represented President Bola Tinubu at the ceremony in Cotonou said “Our presence here in Cotonou underlines President Tinubu’s unwavering, deep‑seated commitment to strengthening ties with our neighbours.”
He called the countries’ bond “one people tied to a common destiny.”
Vice President Shettima described the partnership in historical and economic terms, noting the nearly 600‑kilometre border that links six Nigerian states to Beninese territory and wide social ties that cross the frontier.
He cited shared communities and cultural overlap—“there are Yoruba people on this side of the border just as there are in Nigeria”—as evidence of close integration.
Trade between the two countries now stands at roughly $2 billion a year, the vice president said, and some five million Nigerians live in Benin, a country of about 15 million.
Those figures, he suggested, underpin efforts to expand cross‑border commerce, infrastructure projects and grassroots governance ties.
Nigeria and Cotonou have stepped up cooperation on border security and local‑level governance, Vice President Shettima said, pointing to a memorandum signed last August linking Nigerian border local governments, traditional rulers and Beninese communities.
The pact, he said, targets cross‑border crime and seeks to enhance trade and agricultural activity in towns such as Seme, Igbokofi and Ilara.
Both countries, he added, are implementing regional frameworks aimed at easing trade and movement under ECOWAS, including the Trade Liberalisation Scheme and Common External Tariff, and continue to uphold protocols allowing citizens 90‑day visa‑free movement within member states.
“Because of this, we must show solidarity, empathy and active support toward strengthening democracy in West Africa,” Vice President Shettima said, tying diplomatic outreach to a larger push for democratic resilience in the region.
NewsQuest reports that Shettima’s remarks signify President Tinubu’s effort to cement Nigeria’s role as a regional anchor while addressing security and economic interdependence with neighbours.
