Tinubu travels to South Africa for Bilateral discussions with Ramaphosa

On Monday, President Bola Tinubu will leave France for Cape Town, South Africa, where he will join President Cyril Ramaphosa as co-chair of the 11th session of the Nigeria-South Africa Bi-National Commission.

On December 2, 2024, a cabinet meeting will take place at the South African Parliament Building in Cape Town, which will be followed by the presidential Bi-National Commission on Tuesday, December 3.

Tinubu and Ramaphosa will have in-depth talks on bilateral, regional, and global issues of mutual concern, according to a statement issued on Sunday by presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga.

“The two leaders will assess the progress since the 10th session of the BNC, which was held in Abuja from November 29 to December 1, 2021, building on the commitments made during their meeting on June 20, 2024, in Johannesburg, soon after President Ramaphosa was sworn in for a second term in office.

Eight working groups will engage in discussions during the BNC’s eleventh session, each of which will concentrate on a particular topic of shared interest. Political consultations, immigration and consular services, banking and finance, defense and security, manufacturing, the social sector, mining and energy, trade, and investments are a few of them.

Officials from both nations will sign a number of agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) during the high-level meeting, Onanuga stated.

Founded in 1999, the Nigeria-South Africa Bi-National Commission seeks to deepen the two countries’ friendship and collaboration. The inaugural Heads of State session took place in Pretoria in October 2019.

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The BNC offers a forum for maintaining high-level discussions and encouraging cooperation in vital fields like trade, economic development, security, and diplomacy.

The fact that this year’s meeting falls on the Commission’s 25th anniversary makes it especially noteworthy and demonstrates the long-standing friendship and collaboration between South Africa and Nigeria. A high-level group that includes ministers, state governors, and other high-ranking government officials will go with President Tinubu. Following the BNC meeting, he will return to the nation, Onanuga continued.