President Bola Tinubu arrived in the Brazilian capital on Monday to commence a significant state visit aimed at deepening diplomatic and economic relations between Africa’s most populous nation and Latin America’s largest economy.
According to the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, who disclosed this on a press statement on Monday morning, the President, who flew into Brasília from Los Angeles, was received at the Air Base by senior Brazilian government officials, including Ambassador Carlos Sérgio Sobral Duarte, Secretary for Africa and the Middle East, and Ambassador Carlos José Areias Moreno Garcete, Brazil’s Ambassador to Nigeria. Also present was Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Bianca Ojukwu.
The statement read, “An official welcoming ceremony with full military honours is scheduled to take place later today at the Planalto Palace, where President Tinubu will meet his Brazilian counterpart, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The leaders are expected to hold a tête-à-tête followed by expanded bilateral meetings with senior officials from both governments.
“Several Memoranda of Understanding are set to be signed during the visit, after which both presidents will address a joint press conference.
“As part of his packed schedule, President Tinubu will also meet with the President of the Brazilian Senate, the President of the Chamber of Deputies, and the President of the Supreme Federal Court. He is also slated to participate in the Nigeria-Brazil Business Forum, underscoring the commercial focus of this high-level engagement.”
This visit builds on longstanding diplomatic relations between both countries that date back to the early 1960s. Nigeria formally established its Embassy in Brazil in 1966, while Brazil was the only Latin American country to participate in Nigeria’s independence celebrations in 1960.
Since his inauguration in May 2023, President Tinubu has prioritised strengthening ties with Brazil, attending the BRICS Leaders’ Summit in Rio de Janeiro in July 2025 and the G20 Summit in Brazil in November 2024 at President Lula’s invitation.
The bilateral relationship is anchored by the Mechanism for Strategic Dialogue, established through a 2013 MoU to foster cooperation in agriculture, trade, defence, energy, education, and mining. The Second Session of this Dialogue held in Abuja in June 2025 resulted in the signing of seven new agreements, including defence cooperation, energy, tourism, and livestock development.
It added, “A key highlight of the economic partnership is the $2.5 billion JBS investment aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s food security and developing sustainable supply chains, signed during President Tinubu’s attendance at the 2024 G20 Summit. Additionally, the Green Imperative Programme, a $1.1 billion agricultural mechanisation project launched in 2019, remains on course to supply 10,000 tractors and 50,000 units of farm equipment for assembly in Nigeria.”
This state visit marks another strategic step in President Tinubu’s foreign policy agenda to position Nigeria as a key global partner and attract investments critical for national development.
