Director-General of National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS), Prof. Sulaiman Abubakar, has called on African nations to strengthen intra-continental collaboration and reduce dependence on Western economies to enhance development.
Sulaiman made the call on Thursday in Abuja during a benchmarking visit to NILDS by members of the Committee on Independent Constitutional Bodies of the Parliament of Ghana.
According to him, Africa possesses vast human and natural resources capable of driving sustainable growth if effectively harnessed.
The director-general underscored NILDS’s ongoing advocacy for policies that strengthen African integration, promote economic independence and enhance collaboration among the nations on the continent.
“Africa must work together as a people. We do not need to look outward to Western Europe or anything like that.
“We have got tonnes of resources, tonnes of endowment and tonnes of capital to develop our economy without looking into the continent of Europe and America.
“I want to thank you for believing us, for believing in our country, for believing our leadership.
“I want to assure you that the kind of relationship existed between the two countries shall be nurtured going forward,” he said.
The NILDS boss commended the continued confidence of international partners in Nigeria’s leadership and potential, assuring that such partnerships would be deepened in ways that prioritise mutual respect and growth.
“I want to thank you for believing in us, for believing in our country, for believing in our leadership.
“I want to assure you that the kind of relationship that existed between the two countries shall be nurtured, going forward,” he said.
Earlier in his remarks, Leader of the delegation, Mr Isaac Odamtten, said that the team was in Nigeria to know the formula making Nigeria succeed in a very difficult economic, social and geo-political environment.
He said that the team would also want to understand how the work of the institute had deepened the democratic architecture of governance in Nigeria.
“We also want to understand how the institute relates to individual representatives and senate members within the legislative organ or arm of government.
“I want to leave here picking one or two to go back to Ghana and see how we can also refresh our curriculum and make our institute not just as big structurally as we have seen here, but very much impactful,” he said.
