President Bola Ahmed Tinubu landed in Abuja on Thursday morning after a 10-day diplomatic shuttle that took him from Japan to Brazil, with stopovers in the United States, sealing strategic partnerships expected to shape Nigeria’s economic and political future.
According to his spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, the presidential jet left Brasília International Airport Air Force Base at 12:57 p.m. local time on Wednesday and touched down in Abuja in the early hours of Thursday to a warm reception from top government officials and dignitaries.
Tinubu had earlier attended the ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9) in Yokohama, Japan, where he joined other African leaders at the opening plenary on August 20. He also held bilateral meetings with Japanese officials and rounded off with an interactive session with members of the Nigerian community in Japan.
Following TICAD9, the President made a brief stopover in Los Angeles before proceeding to Brasília, Brazil. There, he held a closed-door meeting with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and senior Brazilian officials, deepening ties between Africa’s largest economy and South America’s biggest nation.
Both leaders witnessed the signing of five Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) cutting across aviation, foreign affairs, science and technology, and agriculture—areas Tinubu has consistently described as central to his administration’s development agenda.
Diplomatic watchers say the agreements could unlock new opportunities in technology transfer, food security, and foreign investment at a time Nigeria is seeking to stabilize its currency, boost exports, and diversify its economy away from oil dependency.
As Tinubu returned to Nigeria, his government faces fresh expectations from citizens who hope the gains of these international missions will translate into tangible relief at home. For now, the President’s whirlwind diplomacy has once again placed Nigeria at the table of nations driving global south cooperation and strategic alliances.
