The Presidency has defended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s ongoing state visit to Saint Lucia, saying those questioning the purpose were “misguided, mischievous, and uninformed.”
It described the visit as a historic and strategic engagement rooted in deep ancestral, diplomatic, economic and cultural ties between Nigeria and the Caribbean.
“From the perspective of the Government of Saint Lucia, the visit by the Nigerian leader paves the way for the rekindling of our ancestral bonds, igniting a new era of diplomatic, cultural, and economic possibilities between our nations,” said the President in a statement by Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.
The visit, according to the Presidency, marks President Tinubu as the first Nigerian leader to undertake a state visit to Saint Lucia, an island country of the West Indies, North America, with a population of 179,285 people.
Its economic mainstay is tourism and agriculture, with bananas being a key export.
Saint Lucia is a member of both the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).
With a combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) exceeding $130 billion, CARICOM presents significant potential for South-South cooperation, trade, and development.
Furthermore, the statement highlighted that many Caribbean nations, including Saint Lucia, have populations with significant Nigerian ancestry.
In the mid-19th Century, waves of immigrants from present-day Nigeria settled in the island nation, bringing cultural and religious traditions that remain part of Saint Lucian society today.
The Presidency emphasised that President Tinubu’s visit aligns with Nigeria’s foreign policy thrust centred on the “Four D’s– Democracy, Development, Diaspora and Demography.
