The newly appointed Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu Ojukwu, expressed her full commitment to the foreign policy direction of President Bola Tinubu’s administration on Monday.
Ojukwu, who is the wife of the late Ikemba Nnewi, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, was among the seven new ministers sworn in by President Tinubu at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
Speaking to State House correspondents after the swearing-in ceremony, Ojukwu, a former winner of the “Most Beautiful Girl” pageant in Nigeria, emphasized the importance of leveraging the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to unlock and harness Nigeria’s economic potential. When asked about her contributions based on her previous experience in foreign missions, she vowed to focus on strengthening democratic institutions across Africa.
“In this respect, I am fully committed to keying into the foreign policy thrust of this government,” Ojukwu stated. She elaborated that the President has laid a solid foundation for foreign policy through his “4Ds” approach, which includes democracy, development, demographic engagement, and diaspora collaboration.
Ojukwu further highlighted the significance of Nigeria’s demographics, noting, “We have a huge youth population in Nigeria. Seventy percent of the population is under the age of 43, so that’s a huge demographic.” She indicated that the administration intends to leverage the creative talents and skills of the youth, as well as the contributions of the diaspora, which remits approximately $22 billion annually. “If we can partner with them and ensure that we bring them into the administration’s initiatives and use them to forge strategic partnerships with financial institutions all over the world, that will in no small way enhance the workings on the service delivery for the Foreign Minister,” she said.
Additionally, Ojukwu emphasized the importance of improving consular services for Nigerians abroad, assuring that her goal is to ensure citizens feel their government genuinely cares for their welfare.
In a related discussion, the Minister of Trade and Investment, Jumoke Oduwole, reiterated similar sentiments about Nigeria’s economic potential.
She stated, “For about the last nine years, I have been working on business climate reforms,” underscoring the need to optimize the AfCFTA for Nigerian businesses and to retain both domestic and foreign investments.
“We need productive jobs that deliver value for Nigerians,” Oduwole emphasized, highlighting the necessity of aligning trade agendas with monetary and fiscal policies. She concluded, “This is significant and imperative; we will prioritize these in the short term.”
