Things Come Together - FAC launch inquiry into Global Britain and the Nigeria-UK relationship

Nigeria faces challenges around corruption, maintaining commitments to protecting human rights and tackling extreme poverty. The country’s rapid development comes at the expense of biodiversity loss and it faces vulnerabilities to climate change in the form of extreme weather events and rising sea levels.

Its geopolitical significance makes the Nigerian Government an attractive subject for Chinese and Russian influencing, and target for terrorist organisations.

Chair's comment

Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Tom Tugendhat MP, said:

“Nigeria has some of the most energetic and entrepreneurial people in the world. Its voice is growing in the world and it shares many bonds with the UK. As we enter a new era of global politics, we need to find ways of supporting Nigeria’s rise and enabling our people to work more closely together. 

“That’s not about governments, but bringing trade opportunity to all. We can align defence and diplomacy, aid and trade to change how we engage and enhance each other.

“Nigerians living in the UK are an essential part of our communities and act as a living bridge to one of the more dynamic economies of Africa. The Foreign Affairs Committee is particularly interested in hearing from Britons of Nigerian descent, and Nigerian nationals residing in the UK.”

The Committee welcomes written evidence on:

What will the vision outlined in the Integrated Review and subsequent Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office priorities for Official Development Assistance spending mean for the UK’s policy toward Nigeria? Specifically:

• What are the emerging opportunities for aid and investment in the science and technology sectors in Nigeria? How should the FCDO encourage investment in these sectors, including in small and medium sized enterprises?
• What opportunities and challenges do the UK’s historic links with Nigeria pose when considering the future partnership between the two countries?
• By what mechanisms could the UK government support trade and private sector development in Nigeria and stimulate investment?
• How should the FCDO take account of and mitigate potential inhibiting factors to investment (such as corruption, security, human rights abuses)?

Which states may be strategic partners and competitors in the UK’s policy toward Nigeria and how should the FCDO respond? In particular, how should the UK engage with the United States, China, the Commonwealth and the African Union?

Form of written evidence

Submissions should be no longer than 3,000 words. The main body of any submission should use numbered paragraphs. Each submission should contain: 

• a short summary, perhaps in bullet point form;
• a brief introduction about the person or organisation submitting evidence, for example explaining their area of expertise or experience;
• any factual information from which the Committee might be able to draw conclusions, or which could be put to other witnesses;
• any recommendations for action by the Government or others which the submitter would like the Committee to consider for inclusion in its report to the House.

Submissions should be in malleable format such as MS Word (not PDFs) with no use of colour or logos. Guidance on submitting written evidence and data protection information is available here: Guidance on submitting written evidence. 

Deadline for submissions 

The Committee is asking for initial written evidence to be submitted through the Committee’s web portal by midnight on 7 June 2021.  

It is recommended that all submitters familiarise themselves with the Guidance on giving evidence to a Select Committee of the House of Commons which outlines particulars of word count, format, document size, and content restrictions. 

Diversity 

We encourage members of underrepresented groups to submit written evidence. We aim to have diverse panels of Select Committee witnesses and ask organisations to bear this in mind when we ask them to choose a representative. We are currently monitoring the diversity of our witnesses. 

Further information

• About Parliament: Select committees
• Visiting Parliament: Watch committees

Image: Kritzolina via Wikicommons