On June 2, Mairo Musa Abbas, Nigeria's newly appointed Consul General in Guangzhou, visited the Foreign Affairs Office of Hainan Province. Wang Lei, Deputy Director-General of the Foreign Affairs Office of Hainan Province, held discussions with Abbas and her delegation on enhancing cooperation and exchanges between Hainan and Nigeria in various fields.

Wang welcomed Abbas and her delegation to Hainan and provided a progress overview of special customs operations of the Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP), highlighting its main trade and investment policies and the province’s unique competitive industries.

He noted that Hainan and Nigeria have a solid foundation for cooperation in areas such as tropical agriculture, trade and investment, and education, with great potential for further growth. Wang said that the Foreign Affairs Office of Hainan Province is willing to stay in close contact with the Nigerian Consulate General in Guangzhou and intends to leverage platforms such as the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference, the China International Consumer Products Expo, the China (Hainan) International Tropical Agricultural Products Winter Trade Fair, the Global Free Trade Zone (Port) Partnership Initiative, and the Hainan Island International Film Festival.

He expressed hope that both sides will continue to expand practical cooperation across areas such as two-way trade and investment, tropical agriculture, value-added processing, film and cultural exchanges, education, and youth exchanges.

Abbas remarked that the Hainan FTP’s development is impressive and will open up new opportunities for future exchanges and cooperation between Hainan and Nigeria.

After reviewing the FTP’s policies, Abbas mentioned that the Nigerian Consulate General in Guangzhou is willing to establish a regular communication mechanism with the Foreign Affairs Office of Hainan Province to enhance subnational exchanges and foster mutual understanding. She also expressed a readiness to promote Hainan FTP policies and development opportunities, covering taxation, processing, investment, healthcare, and education, to Nigerian businesses when suitable.

At the same time, she suggested that Hainan’s trade promotion agencies could organize business delegations to visit Nigeria and explore investment opportunities, fostering mutually beneficial outcomes for both sides.

This marked Abbas’s first visit to Hainan since assuming office as the Nigerian Consul General in Guangzhou in January this year. During her visit, she and her delegation will also go to Xinhai Harbour in Haikou and meet with representatives of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Hainan Provincial Committee, the Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences.

Nigeria, located in West Africa, has maintained diplomatic relations with China since February 10, 1971. Its economy primarily depends on the oil and gas sector, with mining and agriculture also playing important roles. Hainan and Nigeria’s Lekki Free Zone established a free trade zone (port) partnership on December 18, 2024.