India-Nigeria trade hits $9bn as Abuja, New Delhi deepen strategic partnership
India and Nigeria are deepening their strategic partnership across trade, investment, defence, energy, healthcare, agriculture and technology, with bilateral trade climbing to about $9 billion in the 2025–26 financial year, the Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Abhishek Singh, has disclosed.
Singh made the disclosure during a media briefing in Abuja, where he outlined the expanding relationship between the two countries and identified new opportunities for stronger economic and strategic cooperation.
The latest trade figure represents a substantial increase from the $7.13 billion recorded in 2024–25, reinforcing the growing importance of economic relations between Africa’s largest economy and one of the world’s major emerging powers.
According to the envoy, India-Nigeria relations have evolved significantly from their traditional foundations of historical goodwill and oil trade into a broad-based strategic partnership covering security, technology, food security, healthcare, agriculture and global governance.
“India-Nigeria relations are no longer defined only by historical goodwill or oil trade,” Singh said, stressing that the partnership was increasingly becoming multidimensional.
Over 200 Indian companies operating in Nigeria
Singh disclosed that more than 200 Indian companies are currently active in Nigeria, with investments covering pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, power, construction, consumer goods, healthcare and services.
He said many of the companies were not simply importing products into Nigeria but had established factories and production facilities in the country.
The investments, he added, have resulted in employment for close to 100,000 Nigerians, making Indian companies collectively one of the country’s largest private-sector employers.
The High Commissioner said the growing presence of Indian businesses reflected the confidence of investors from his country in Nigeria’s market and its long-term economic prospects.
Energy security takes centre stage
Energy security, he said, remains a critical pillar of the strategic relationship, with crude oil and liquefied natural gas continuing to play important roles.
But cooperation, according to Singh, is expanding beyond traditional oil trade to include Indian investments in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, pipeline security, compressed natural gas conversion and liquefied petroleum gas infrastructure.
He stressed that India’s population of about 1.4 billion and Nigeria’s population of more than 230 million create enormous energy demand in both countries.
“This is all the more reason that the two great democracies, India and Nigeria, should cooperate more in the field of energy security,” he said.
Defence partnership gains momentum
The High Commissioner described defence and maritime security as another important pillar of the relationship, noting that cooperation between the two countries dates back several decades.
India, he said, supported Nigeria in establishing the National Defence Academy in Kaduna as well as the Naval College in Port Harcourt.
The two countries also face common security challenges, including terrorism, violent extremism, piracy, organised crime and illicit trafficking.
Singh said cooperation therefore covers intelligence sharing, counter-terrorism, defence training and maritime security, particularly in the Gulf of Guinea.
He disclosed that a Nigerian naval delegation was scheduled to travel to India for bilateral discussions, describing the continuing engagement as evidence of the depth of defence relations between the two countries.
Defence equipment and sales, he added, also remain areas of collaboration.
India extends $395m credit to Nigeria
The High Commissioner said India’s development partnership with Nigeria had also produced tangible results, including $395 million in concessional lines of credit.
He said India had further provided extensive technical and professional training to Nigerians through the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) programme.
Nigerians have benefited from ITEC training in areas including auditing, teaching, rural development, electrification and other specialised fields, while members of the Nigerian Armed Forces have continued to receive training at leading Indian defence institutions.
Singh said India’s development assistance was based on sharing its strengths in areas that correspond with Nigeria’s own development priorities.
Among the areas identified are affordable medicines, Digital Public Infrastructure, agriculture, skills development, food security, climate-resilient development and space applications.
Pharmaceuticals, technology and agriculture emerging as growth areas
Healthcare is another major area of bilateral cooperation.
Singh pointed to India’s strength in pharmaceutical manufacturing, noting that the country is widely recognised as a major global supplier of medicines and remains one of the largest exporters of pharmaceutical products to Nigeria.
He said cooperation was also expanding into Digital Public Infrastructure, space applications, agricultural mechanisation, food security and climate-resilient development.
These, he said, represent some of the new frontiers of India-Nigeria cooperation.
Tinubu, Modi visits elevated ties
The High Commissioner traced the recent momentum in bilateral relations to increased high-level political engagement.
He recalled President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s visit to India in September 2023 during India’s G20 presidency.
The visit was particularly significant, he said, because it coincided with the formal admission of the African Union as a full member of the G20.
The engagement was followed by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to Nigeria in November 2024—the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Nigeria in about 17 years.
During the visit, Modi held extensive discussions with President Tinubu on trade and investment, defence, energy, agriculture, healthcare, education, technology and security.
The significance attached to the relationship was further demonstrated when Nigeria conferred its highest national honour, the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON), on the Indian Prime Minister.
Singh also recalled other high-level engagements, including the participation of India’s Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh, at President Tinubu’s inauguration in May 2023 and the visit of India’s External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, to Abuja for the Sixth India-Nigeria Joint Commission Meeting in January 2024.
Tinubu invited to BRICS summit
Looking ahead, India is seeking stronger Nigerian participation in global economic and political platforms, particularly BRICS.
Singh disclosed that President Tinubu has been invited to the BRICS Leaders’ Summit scheduled for September 12–13, 2026, in New Delhi.
He expressed hope that the Nigerian President would lead a high-powered delegation to the summit.
The envoy said Nigeria’s participation was important because of its position as Africa’s largest economy and one of the world’s most populous nations.
India assumed the BRICS chairmanship in 2026, with the summit expected to focus on pressing global challenges, economic cooperation and outreach to partner countries.
India backs Nigeria’s UN Security Council bid
The two countries are also backing each other’s aspirations at the United Nations.
Singh disclosed that Nigeria has conveyed its support for India’s campaign for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council, while India has also conveyed its support for Nigeria’s candidacy.
India’s campaign is being promoted under the banner “SHANTI” — Securing Holistic Advancement through Norms, Trust and Integrity.
According to Singh, the campaign represents India’s vision of a peaceful, inclusive and reformed global order.
He reiterated India’s position that reform of the UN Security Council should involve expansion of both permanent and non-permanent membership categories.
60,000 Indians form bridge between both countries
Singh also highlighted the contribution of the Indian community in Nigeria, estimating that about 60,000 Indians live in the country.
Many, he said, are second- and third-generation Indians who are now deeply rooted in Nigerian society.
He expressed appreciation to the Nigerian government and people for providing the Indian community with the space and opportunities to thrive.
According to him, the community has become an important bridge between both countries in education, healthcare, culture and commerce.
He said many members of the community regard India as their motherland while also considering Nigeria their fatherland.
From 1958 liaison office to strategic partnership
India established its Liaison Office in Lagos in 1958, two years before Nigeria’s independence, marking an early foundation for the relationship between the two countries.
The relationship was elevated to a Strategic Partnership in October 2007, signalling a shift towards broader political, economic and security cooperation.
Nearly two decades later, Singh said the partnership had grown into a multidimensional relationship with significant implications for both countries and the wider Global South.
With bilateral trade now approaching $10 billion, more than 200 Indian companies operating in Nigeria, nearly 100,000 Nigerians employed by Indian firms and cooperation expanding across defence, energy, healthcare, agriculture and technology, the relationship between Abuja and New Delhi appears poised for an even deeper phase.
For India, Nigeria is no longer merely a major African trading partner. It is increasingly being positioned as a strategic partner in shaping the future of Africa, the Global South and the emerging multipolar world.
