Nigeria has been identified as one of China’s most important partners in Africa, with Chinese officials describing the country as the continent’s largest engineering contracting market and a major destination for trade and investment.
The disclosure was made during a seminar held in Beijing, attended by senior Nigerian government officials and media executives.
Speaking at the event, Deputy Director of the China International Communications Group, Li Hengtian, said Nigeria plays a strategic role in China’s engagement with Africa.
According to him, Nigeria is currently China’s largest engineering contracting market in Africa, its second-largest export market and third-largest trading partner on the continent.
He explained that the seminar was organised to strengthen communication, cultural exchange and cooperation between both countries through media collaboration and people-focused storytelling.
Quoting renowned Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Li said, “Stories are the highest form of human communication.”
“Today, in Beijing at the beginning of summer, we are here precisely for stories — to tell China’s stories, to listen to Nigeria’s stories, and even more importantly, to jointly write a new chapter of China-Nigeria friendship,” he added.
Li described China and Nigeria as long-standing partners whose diplomatic relationship has existed since 1971.
He compared the relationship between both countries to the Niger River and the Yangtze River, saying that despite geographical distance, both nations continue to move toward deeper cooperation and shared development.
Highlighting major projects executed through China-Africa cooperation, he referenced the Lagos Rail Mass Transit, the Abuja Rail Mass Transit, the Lekki Deep Sea Port and the Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Station as examples of growing collaboration between both nations.
According to him, China-Nigeria relations have become an important part of broader initiatives such as the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Li also noted increasing educational and economic exchanges between both countries, saying more Nigerian students are studying in China while Chinese companies continue to expand development projects across Nigeria.
“This year, the two countries are working together to build a China-Nigeria community with a shared future,” he said.
He expressed confidence that cooperation between both nations would continue to deepen and produce more economic and developmental benefits across Africa.
