Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, H.E, Mr. Yu Dunhai has stated that the Recommendations of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development demonstrate China’s commitment to expanding high-standard opening-up and sharing development opportunities with all countries and noted that China-Nigeria cooperation would witness more opportunities. The Chinese envoy gave the hint while on a visit to Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Yusuf Tuggar.
According to him, China and Nigeria have always understood and supported each other on issues concerning each other’s core interests. China also supports Nigeria’s efforts to combat terrorism and is ready to work with Nigeria to implement zero-tariff treatment for Nigerian exports at an early date, and to make good preparations for the activities celebrating the 55th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries and the 2026 China-Africa Year of Cultural Exchanges. These endeavors, Ambassador Yu stated, will consolidate strategic mutual trust between the two countries, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, and deliver greater benefits to the two peoples.
Foreign Minister Tuggar said that China is Nigeria’s comprehensive strategic partner, and Nigeria attaches great importance to developing relations with China. He thanked China for its active support for Nigeria’s economic and social development. Nigeria firmly adheres to the one-China principle and is ready to strengthen synergy of development strategies with China, expand cooperation in areas such as manufacturing, trade and investment, and take bilateral relations to new heights.
In an opinion article, widely published in the Nigeria’s print media, the envoy further laid out the opportunities of the 15th Five Year Plan. According to the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China which was convened in Beijing last October and which reviewed and adopted the Recommendations of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development, outlining a grand blueprint for China’s development over the next five years, pointing the way forward for Chinese modernization.
The session also laid out plans for improving the institutions and mechanisms for high-standard opening-up, explicitly putting forward “steadily expanding institutional opening-up”. Unlike the opening-up centered on the flow of goods and factors, institutional opening-up, as a hallmark of high-standard openness, focus more on rules, regulations, management, and standards. It is more comprehensive, systematic, and stable, representing a more advanced form of opening-up.
He further noted that since December 1, 2024, China has granted zero-tariff treatment to 100% of products from all least developed countries (LDCs) with which it has diplomatic relations, covering 33 African nations and in June this year, China further extended this zero-tariff policy to include all 53 African countries that have established diplomatic ties with it. These measures reflect the consistent implementation of the principle of “mutual benefit and win-win cooperation” in guiding China-Africa relations and highlight China’s firm determination to adapt to the evolving international landscape and strengthen multilateral economic and trade relations.
The envoy whose opinion articles in the local media have invested the relation with more clarity said that China’s zero-tariff policy toward African countries will help reshape the trade landscape between China and Africa, elevating Africa’s position in international trade and global supply chains. It will also support African nations in achieving industrial chain upgrading, moving beyond a “resource-export” economic model, and accelerating their industrialization and modernization, further illustrating the great significance of strengthening cooperation among Global South countries.
China and Nigeria share a long-standing and profound friendship and bilateral relations between the two countries have grown rapidly. Last September, during the meeting between President Xi Jinping and President Bola Tinubu in Beijing, the two heads of state elevated the China-Nigeria relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. China, he stated boldly supports Nigeria in playing a greater role in international and regional affairs and stands ready to strengthen coordination with Nigeria through multilateral mechanisms. Together, the two sides will advance solidarity and self-reliant development of the Global South, advance world multi-polarization and economic globalization, and contribute to a more just and equitable global governance system.
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