Nigeria has called on the BRICS to move beyond diplomatic declarations and deliver measurable gains in trade, investment, technology transfer and job creation.
The Nigeria’s Vice President Kashim Shettima who presented President Bola
Ahmed Tinubu’s message to the bloc’s 18th Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi on Saturday, framed the relationship as part of a broader effort to give African countries greater influence in global economic governance.
In a five-minute address circulated by presidential aide Stanley Nkwocha, Shettima said Nigeria wanted its BRICS partnership to support industrialisation, digital development, food and energy security, infrastructure and human- capital development.
“Nigeria calls for a BRICS partnership that moves from dialogue to delivery, from commitments to implementation, and from cooperation to measurable development outcomes,” Shettima said in the speech.
An investment pitch built around Africa’s market
Shettima presented Nigeria as a potential gateway to Africa’s expanding consumer and business market under the African Continental Free Trade Area. He urged BRICS investors to consider partnerships that create local value rather than simply extract raw materials.
The sectors identified in the address included agriculture, food security, energy, infrastructure, manufacturing, healthcare and critical minerals. Nigeria’s priorities, he said, are partnerships that bring technology transfer, local production, industrial capacity and employment.
The appeal comes as Abuja seeks to deepen economic ties with BRICS member and partner countries.
Nigeria became a BRICS partner country in January 2025 and used the New Delhi
summit to pursue wider South-South cooperation, according to Nigerian media reports.
The Nation reported that Shettima arrived in India to represent Tinubu and was expected to use the summit to advance cooperation in trade, agriculture, technology, artificial intelligence, industrial development and the digital economy.
The Guardian reported that the Nigerian delegation also included the ministers responsible for foreign affairs; industry, trade and investment; communications, innovation and digital economy; and
environment.
Digital economy and technology ownership
A major theme of the speech was the need for developing countries to become producers and owners of technology.
Shettima said Nigeria was seeking BRICS cooperation in artificial intelligence, digital public infrastructure, financial technology, telecommunications, cybersecurity, biotechnology and advanced manufacturing. “A nation that owns no technology risks renting its future,” he said.
He linked that argument to Nigeria’s programmes for digital skills, entrepreneurship, research and technology-enabled businesses, naming the 3 Million Technical Talent initiative, Project Bridge and national artificial -intelligence programmes.
He said Project Bridge was expanding broadband, fibre connectivity and digital public services, while Nigeria sought an open, secure and inclusive digital ecosystem.
The address also endorsed rules-based multilateral trade, e-commerce and digital trade. Shettima argued that national borders should not determine the limits of enterprise and highlighted Nigeria’s role in championing the AfCFTA protocol on digital trade.
The emphasis on technology reflects a wider Nigerian interest in India’s experience.
Before the summit, Foreign Affairs Minister Bianca Odumegwu- Ojukwu said Nigeria was particularly interested in India’s use of technology and artificial intelligence to create opportunities for its large youth population.
Renewed Hope agenda meets BRICS priorities
Shettima situated the BRICS proposal within Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, saying Nigeria’s domestic reforms were intended to strengthen macroeconomic stability, diversify production, raise productivity, improve infrastructure and human capital, attract investment, and promote private-sector-led growth.
He described resilience not simply as the ability to withstand external shocks, but as the creation of durable opportunities for Nigerians.
“That approach would require development finance for infrastructure, connectivity, energy, agriculture, healthcare, education and
industrialisation, he said.
The Nigerian delegation’s economic agenda is also tied to bilateral opportunities with India.
The Nation quoted Industry, Trade and Investment Minister Jumoke Oduwole as saying that Nigeria wanted to deepen a trade relationship with India that had previously reached about $14 billion and that investors of Indian origin had expressed interest in meeting the delegation.
Climate finance without sacrificing development
The speech called for climate action to be matched by the financial and technological support needed by emerging economies.
Nigeria endorsed cooperation in renewable energy, gas, clean technologies, climate-smart agriculture, sustainable infrastructure and responsible critical-mineral development.
Shettima also called for affordable climate finance, technology transfer and capacity building for Africa.
His formulation was that climate responsibility widen development opportunities rather than restrict them. That position reflects a recurring tension for developing economies: they seek to reduce emissions and build climate resilience while expanding access to electricity, industry, transport and jobs.
In the speech, Nigeria presented BRICS cooperation as a way to pursue
both objectives through financing, technology and productive investment.
A call for a stronger Global South voice
Beyond economics, Shettima used the summit to renew Nigeria’s call for reform of the international system.
He supported a more representative and responsive globalgovernance architecture, including reform of the United Nations Security Council and the
international financial system.
He said BRICS could amplify the voice of the Global South and help advance an international order that reflects current economic and demographic realities.
The argument places Nigeria’s participation in BRICS within a diplomatic strategy that combines economic engagement with demands for greater representation in global institutions.
The 18th summit is being held under the theme “Building Resilience, Innovation,
Cooperation and Sustainability.”
Nigerian officials said ahead of the meeting that the country would pursue new partnerships and investment opportunities in agriculture, technology, artificial intelligence, trade, the digital economy and other strategic areas.
The test is implementation
The speech was ambitious in scope, ranging from critical minerals and manufacturing to artificial intelligence, climate finance and United Nations reform.
Its most consequential message, however, was practical: Nigeria wants BRICS cooperation judged by results.
For Abuja, those results would include more trade, productive investment, technology transfer, jobs and stronger domestic industrial capacity.
For BRICS partners, Nigeria is offering access to one of Africa’s largest markets and a role in projects linked to digital infrastructure, energy, agriculture, healthcare and manufacturing.
Whether the partnership produces those outcomes will depend on the follow- through after the summit: bankable projects, financing arrangements, regulatory reforms, technology partnerships and mechanisms that convert political commitments into measurable economic gains.
Shettima closed by saying Nigeria was ready to contribute to a BRICS partnership that could withstand global shocks, embrace innovation, advance shared prosperity and protect future generations. “We must build a future in which Africa moves from the margins of global development to the frontiers of global growth and innovation,” he said.