Vice President Kashim Shettima has reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the multilateral trading system, declaring that no nation can achieve sustainable prosperity by isolating itself from the global community.
Shettima made the declaration on Saturday when he met with the Director-General of the WTO, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, on the sidelines of the ongoing BRICS Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi, India.
The Vice President assured that Nigeria would continue to support the WTO in strengthening multilateralism and advancing a global economic system anchored on cooperation, inclusiveness and shared prosperity rather than isolation.
“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.
He also underscored the importance of migration to development, innovation and economic growth, noting that immigrants have historically contributed significantly to the development of nations and major cities across the world.
“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 the Nigerian diaspora as an example, Shettima commended Nigerians living abroad for their achievements in education, entrepreneurship and various professional fields.
He cited a recent Pew Research Centre analysis of 2024 US Census Bureau data, which found that 67 per cent of Nigerian-born Black immigrants aged 25 and above in the United States had attained at least a bachelor’s degree—the highest proportion among the major Black immigrant groups examined.
The Vice President also commended Okonjo-Iweala for her leadership of the WTO, urging her to continue deploying her wealth of experience in advancing global development.
“You are doing a very wonderful job at the WTO, but you still have a lot to contribute to humanity,” he told the WTO Director-General.
Okonjo-Iweala, 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 partnership and foreign investment opportunities to leaders of the BRICS alliance on Sunday when he addresses the summit, which is themed “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.”
The Vice President is also expected to advocate a more inclusive international order while highlighting the objectives of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, particularly the administration’s efforts to create sustainable economic opportunities through reforms, infrastructure expansion and private-sector-led growth.
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