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11/22/2024 05:13:32 pm

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Premier Li’s Visit to Nigeria to Further Strengthen Ties

Enhanced cooperation between China and Nigeria is anticipated as a result of Premier Li Keqiang's visit to the West African country, according to officials and analysts. 

Li arrived in Abuja, Nigeria's capital, Abuja on Tuesday for a three-day visit.  Nigeria is the second country in Li's African visit, his first since assuming office in 2013.

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Premier Li will be attending the 2014 World Economic Forum on Africa and is scheduled to meet African leaders while in the Nigerian capital. 

While in Nigeria, Li and members of his delegation are likewise expected to convene and work with the government of Nigeria to further reinforce economic cooperation between the two nations. 

A very warm and friendly relationship exists between China, the world's largest developing country, and Nigeria, the country with the biggest economy in the African continent, according to Gu Xiaoile, China's ambassador to Nigeria. 

"The trade between China and Nigeria is growing rapidly, and people of the two countries have solid relationship," said Gu.

The visit of the Chinese premier will bolster political trust and will further develop cooperation between the two nations in different fields of endeavor, according to Gu, who added that Nigeria's pressing needs are in the areas of infrastructure development, hydropower and energy.

China has been lending Nigeria its support in these fields and is Nigeria's main partner in its new infrastructure development as well as in the rehabilitation of its existing structures. 

"Through this visit, the leaders of the two countries will reach a consensus on the development of bilateral relations, which will also create a good environment for economic, trade and investment cooperation," added Gu.

Before Li's departure for his African visit, Li Zhibiao, a researcher from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, commented that from the economic viewpoint, cooperation between China and Africa will mutually benefit China and the African nations.  

The cooperation will provide China with resources that it needs to further its economic development while bringing nice but inexpensive products to Africa. 

Wole Akande, an international economic expert from Nigeria said that the make-up of the China delegation to the 2014 World Forum on Africa "is an indication of the seriousness which Beijing attaches to its economic relationship with Africa, and Nigeria in particular."

Aside from the mutually beneficial economic ties that exist between the two nations, their educational and cultural exchange programs have likewise been highly contributory to the deepening of their ties. 

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