- Israel has pledged to continue to show support to Nigeria and strengthen its bilateral relations with Nigeria
- Guy Feldman, Ambassador of Israel to Nigeria, made this known in an during the Israeli National Day celebration at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja
- The envoy who spoke on the existing relations between Nigeria and Israel, called for more collaboration in agriculture with better irrigation techniques
Israel has pledged to continue to show support to Nigeria and strengthen its bilateral relationship with Nigeria. Guy Feldman, Ambassador of Israel to Nigeria, made this known in an interview during the Israeli National Day celebration at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja on Thursday, May 19.
The envoy who spoke on the existing relations between Nigeria and Israel, called for more collaboration in agriculture with better irrigation techniques, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.
He said: “Some parts of Nigeria have similar arid land features as Israel therefore, Israel and Nigeria have a lot to share in terms water management.
READ ALSO: 8 killed as bandits exchange gunfire with soldiers in Zamfara
“Israel is 60 per cent desert, but with high technology, it is today pumping over 80 per cent of its waste water back to the sea, while losing only two per cent of water.
“These practices are being taught to Nigerians to help those in areas with arid land to improve their agriculture with better irrigation practices.
“Israel is determined and willing to help Nigeria attain economic development and we are achieving that by training Nigerian professionals and sharing our vast knowledge in important segments that will help Nigeria further develop.
“There are many Israeli company managers and operators in Nigeria who are focused on helping Nigerians to improve the performance of agriculture, water management and security within the country.’’
Dean of diplomatic corp and high commissioner to Nigeria, Salaheddine Ibrahima said it was nice to have countries come together to support other countries celebrate their growth.
Ibrahima said: “It is nice to see that we are supportive of each other and that we see the need to celebrate our countries as a way to improve our relationships. We are happy for Israel and wish them much more growth and success in the years ahead.’’
Israel and Nigeria established diplomatic relations in 1960. During the 1960s and early 1970s, Israel played a significant role in the development of Sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria.
Hundreds of Israeli experts and volunteers were sent to help in the development and modernization of agriculture, education, medicine and technology training, and hundreds of Nigerian farmers, experts, educators, academicians, students, doctors, community workers and engineers were trained in Israel. After the Yom Kippur War in 1973, Nigeria severed diplomatic ties with Israel.
Diplomatic relations were restored in September 1992. Since April 1993, Israel has maintained an embassy in Abuja and Nigeria has an embassy in Tel Aviv. Over fifty Israeli companies operate in Nigeria in the spheres of construction, infrastructure, hi-tech, communications and IT, agriculture and water management.
PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read best news on Nigeria’s #1 news app
In turn, there are over 5,000 Nigerian companies and organizations that operate in Israel. Trade and commerce are promoted by the Israeli Export and International Cooperation Institute, the Nigerian-Israeli Chamber of Commerce (NICC) and the Israel-Africa Chamber of Commerce. In 2006, a Nigerian-Israeli Business Forum was inaugurated in Abuja.
That year, the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of both countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in which Israel and Nigeria agreed to consult on issues of bilateral relations and other regional and international issues of mutual interest.
The first round of consultations took place in Jerusalem in November 2006.[4] In 2013, President Goodluck Jonathan became the first Nigerian President to visit the State of Israel. He had gone on a pilgrimage and signed bilateral air service agreements with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Meanwhile, NAIJ.com had reported that an audit report said Nigerian embassy in Israel mismanaged funds totalling $493, 111 and another N331 million (N331,461,392) of the total revenue generated and received between 2013 and 2015.
The annual report of the Auditor-General of the Federation for the year ended 2015, said the embassy could not account for the funds in its records submitted for review.
Sheikh attire on Sallah day According to the latest report from the Auditor General, a total sum of $858,704 (3,091,337 Shekels) was reportedly generated as revenue in respect of visas and administrative charges in the period under review, but only $365, 593 was remitted into the designated account.
Buhari is the General Overseer of corruption - on NAIJ.com TV:
Source: Naija.ng
About Unknown
Logging you in...