Nigeria has called for an accelerated United Kingdom visa process for Nigerian students as both countries seek to deepen bilateral relations across economic, security and diplomatic areas.
The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, disclosed this on Thursday in a post on X following a telephone conversation with the newly appointed UK Minister of State for International Development and Africa at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Kirsty McNeill, MP.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu said the discussion focused on strengthening relations between Nigeria and the UK, with particular attention to areas of mutual interest.
She said both sides discussed ways to increase economic cooperation and sustain the momentum generated by the state visit of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, to the UK earlier in the year.
Security cooperation also featured in the discussions, with the two officials examining opportunities to further strengthen collaboration between both countries.
According to Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Nigeria also sought greater consideration for Nigerian students applying for UK visas, particularly through an acceleration of the visa processing system.
The minister said elections and cooperation between Nigeria and the UK at multilateral fora were also discussed during the telephone conversation.
She described the engagement with McNeill as an opportunity to further advance the longstanding relationship between both countries and identify areas for stronger cooperation.
The discussion comes as Nigeria and the UK continue to strengthen bilateral ties, with economic relations, security, education and diplomatic cooperation forming key areas of engagement between the two countries.
