Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

and the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

established their bilateral, diplomatic and trade relation in August 1962. Nigeria has an embassy in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

and the Philippines has an embassy in Abuja.

History

Before the establishment of the Nigerian Embassy in

Makati Makati ( ), officially the City of Makati ( fil, Lungsod ng Makati), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. Makati is the financial center of the Philippines; it has the highest concentration ...

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the seat of government and one of three defined metropolitan areas in ...

in 1981, the Nigerian Student Union in the Philippines served as the de facto consular office of Nigeria. The Philippines became a destination for Nigerian students as early as the 1960s. On March 9, 1986, about 100 Nigerian students seized the Nigerian embassy in Makati, Metro Manila to protest against the diplomatic mission's alleged apathy to the plight of the then 400 Nigerians in studying in the country. They protested against the limits of remittances from their families imposed by the Nigerian government. The Philippines previously imposed a deployment ban to Nigeria due to incidents of kidnappings of Filipino seafarers in the

Niger Delta The Niger Delta is the delta of the Niger River sitting directly on the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean in Nigeria. It is located within nine coastal southern Nigerian states, which include: all six states from the South South geopolitic ...

between 2006 and 2009 but has since been lifted after the Philippines recognized that the insurgency in the Delta has been properly addressed. In 2012, the Nigerian government rued the poor trade relations it had with the

government of the Philippines The Government of the Philippines ( fil, Pamahalaan ng Pilipinas) has three interdependent branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The Philippines is governed as a unitary state under a presidential representative and d ...

. Thereby calling for more active steps to be taken by both countries to further strengthen and deepen their existing ties in necessary areas. Nigerian Foreign Minister Professor

Viola Onwuliri Viola Adaku Onwuliri (born 18 June 1956) is a university professor of Biochemistry and politician who served as Nigeria's Foreign Minister. Life Viola Onwuliri is the first daughter of the Royal Family of His Highness Eze Cletus and Ugoeze Do ...

told an audience at the second edition of Nigeria–Philippines Joint Commission held in Abuja that in spite of the long-standing relations between both countries, the economic and trade relations have been quite low. In 2015, the Nigerian government started the Water Supply Support Project to provide clean

drinking water Drinking water is water that is used in drink or food preparation; potable water is water that is safe to be used as drinking water. The amount of drinking water required to maintain good health varies, and depends on physical activity level, a ...

, water filtration and

rainwater harvesting Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is the collection and storage of rain, rather than allowing it to run off. Rainwater is collected from a roof-like surface and redirected to a tank, cistern, deep pit (well, shaft, or borehole), aquifer, or a reservoir ...

to areas affected by

Typhoon Haiyan Typhoon Haiyan, known in the Philippines as Super Typhoon Yolanda, was one of the most powerful tropical cyclones ever recorded. On making landfall, Haiyan devastated portions of Southeast Asia, particularly the Philippines. It is one of the ...

. Several Philippine companies have moved to Nigeria between 2012 and 2016, and some of these companies entered the Nigerian market with the help of the Nigerian Embassy in Manila

Tacloban Tacloban ( ; ), officially the City of Tacloban ( war, Syudad han Tacloban; fil, Lungsod ng Tacloban), is a first class highly urbanized city in the Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. The city is autonomous from the province of Leyte, ...

, which promoted and facilitated investment opportunities.

Migration

Nigerians began to go to the Philippines for their studies in the 1960s. Nigeria continues to be a hub for Overseas Filipinos primarily workers involved in the oil, gas and construction industry of the country. As of 2011, there were 7,240 Filipinos in Nigeria, mostly professionals and spouses of Nigerian nationals. As of 2014, about 8,000 Nigerians are studying in the Philippines.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nigeria-Philippines relations

Bilateral relations of the Philippines

History

Migration

See also

References