Speaker Tajudeen seeks stronger diplomatic, inter-parliamentary relations with EU

By Christiana Ekpa

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, has called for a deeper partnership towards strengthening inter-parliamentary relations between Nigerian and the European Parliament.
Speaker Tajudeen made the call while playing host to a delegation of the Committee on Foreign Afairs (AFET) of the European Parliament which paid him a courtesy visit at the National Assembly on Tuesday.
Represented by the Deputy Speaker, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu, the Speaker said there’s need for concrete action that reflects a true partnership of equals in solving shared challenges and building a prosperous future.
He appealed to the delegation to facilitate legislative exchange programmes where Nigerian and European parliamentarians can hold committee sessions, share best practices in legislative drafting, collaborate on thematic areas such as climate legislation, digital governance, trade policy, and democratic accountability.
This peer-to-peer learning, according to the Speaker will strengthen both institutions.
He also called for establishment of a Joint Parliamentary Committee dedicated to Nigeria-EU relations, to provide a structured platform for regular dialogue on legislative priorities, policy alignment, and mutual accountability on commitments made at executive levels.
The Speaker commended the delegation for their work, saying that their efforts in strengthening trans-Atlantic and EU-Africa relations have not gone unnoticed.