Nigeria and The Gambia have agreed to strengthen bilateral relations and revive the Nigeria-Gambia Joint Commission to expand cooperation in key sectors.
The agreement was reached during a bilateral meeting between Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, and Gambian Foreign Minister, Sering Modou Njie, on the sidelines of the ECOWAS Mid-Year Summit in Freetown, Sierra Leone.
According to a statement issued on Thursday by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Kimiebi Ebienfa, Enikanolaiye praised the longstanding relations between the two countries and reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to deepening the partnership.
“The Nigeria-Gambia bilateral relations have been excellent over the years.
“We intend to enhance and deepen the brotherly ties between our two countries and further explore opportunities for collaboration to the mutual benefit of Nigeria and The Gambia,” Enikanolaiye said.
In his remarks, Njie congratulated Enikanolaiye on his appointment and welcomed Nigeria’s initiative to strengthen cooperation.
“The Gambia remains grateful to Nigeria for the leadership role the country played during the political impasse experienced in 2017.
“The political stability and current development in The Gambia are attributable to Nigeria’s timely intervention, a feat that remains indelible in the history of our country,” the Gambian minister said.
Njie also commended Nigeria’s support through the deployment of Technical Aid Corps volunteers, its contributions to the ECOWAS Mission in The Gambia, and the training of Gambian military personnel in Nigerian military academies.
Responding, Enikanolaiye reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to pan-African solidarity and development.
“Nigeria remains committed to promoting pan-African unity, solidarity and development, especially through the framework of the Nigerian Technical Aid Corps,
“The programme enables Nigeria to deploy highly qualified professionals to African and Caribbean countries to support manpower development,” he said.
Both ministers agreed that reviving the Nigeria-Gambia Joint Commission would provide a platform to review dormant agreements and identify new areas of cooperation between the two countries.