Speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives visits Speaker Oshima
On Thursday, 7 November, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, who was in Japan at the invitation of the Japanese House of Representatives, visited the House with his delegation and met with Mr. Tadamori Oshima, Speaker; Mr. Hirotaka Akamatsu, Vice-Speaker; Mr. Tsuyoshi Takagi, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Rules and Administration; Mr. Nobuo Kishi, Mr. Yoshio Maki and Mr. Hidemichi Sato, Directors of the Committee; and Mr. Tetsuya Shiokawa, Member of the Committee.
Speaker Oshima, beginning by welcoming the delegation to Japan, stated his hope that this visit would lead to more frequent parliamentary and intergovernmental exchange. He also said that Nigeria was one of Japan's most important partners in Africa, and he hoped for further promotion of investment and economic opportunities between the two countries.
In reply, Speaker Gbajabiamila expressed his gratitude for the invitation to Japan and his congratulations on the enthronement of His Majesty the Emperor. He then stated that he intended to develop bilateral relations through interactions between the parliamentarians' friendship leagues of both countries, as exchange between parliamentarians is an important diplomatic option which can produce greater gains than exchange between governments in some cases. Also expressing his appreciation for Japan's support for the development of Nigeria, he stated his hope for continued cooperation from Japan to develop infrastructure. Furthermore, he remarked that he hoped to cooperate with Japan on international issues such as climate change and terrorism.
Other subjects in their meeting included the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games.
