The Presidency has said the Qatari government did not snub President Bola Tinubu.
Jerrymusa.com reports that the President’s State Visit to the Gulf nation on March 2–3, 2023, is one of several activities planned, according to the Presidency, including the investment forum between the corporate communities of Qatar and Nigeria.
This was revealed in a statement released on Saturday and signed by Mr Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu’s Special Advisor on Information and Strategy.
“Any suggestion that the Qatari authorities have ignored the Nigerian leader over a business and investment forum that is unrelated to the crucial state visit and that President Tinubu is scheduled to attend as a guest is highly incorrect,” Onanuga stated.
In response to a diplomatic document that was leaked between the foreign ministries of Qatar, demonstrating that the Arab country would be unable to host the suggested forum that was supposed to take place during Tinubu’s visit.
No Strong Investment Tie Between Nigeria and Qatar
Qatar stated that the absence of a legally enforceable agreement with Nigeria to encourage investment was the reason behind its decision to decline the business and investment conference.
Furthermore, the letter clarified that Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Qassim al-Thani, the Minister of Commerce and Industry, “will be carrying out official missions outside the country during the upcoming visit period,” meaning he cannot attend the conference.
However, as the Presidency clarified in a statement headlined “President Bola Tinubu’s State Visit to Qatar,” “President Tinubu is anticipated to continue to Qatar on the State Visit as scheduled, and during the visit, the Nigerian leader will hold high-level bilateral talks with the leader of Qatar on a wide variety of significant topics, including diplomatic and economic ones.
“We are aware of a leaked diplomatic correspondence between our Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of the State of Qatar in Abuja regarding President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s state visit to Qatar between March 2 and 3, 2024,” the Presidency stated.
“The diplomatic document about an investment forum that was leaked by miscreants is not in any way a slight against President Tinubu by the government of Qatar.”
According to the document, a business and Investment forum led by the private sector is scheduled to take place concurrently with President Tinubu’s State Visit.
The Nigerian Association of Chambers of Industry, Mines, and Agriculture in Nigeria and the Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Qatar are organising the event, where business people from Nigeria will discuss commercial and investment opportunities with their Qatari counterparts.
“We acknowledge the robust bilateral ties that exist between our two nations and confirm that President Bola Tinubu is visiting Qatar on the invitation of Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, the Emir of Qatar.”
The Presidency emphasised, “The State Visit is specifically aimed at strengthening the bilateral economic cooperation between Nigeria and Qatar.”
It stated that NACCIMA and the Qatar Chambers of Commerce and Industry were working together to make the most of President Tinubu’s visit to Doha by encouraging business people from both nations to investigate opportunities in important economic industries, including, but not limited to, manufacturing, agro-business, oil and gas, real estate, construction, ICT, renewable energy, solid minerals, and the service sector.
According to the statement, the two leaders are dedicated to preserving and enhancing the friendly and unique relationship that now exists between the State of Qatar and Nigeria.
This is not the first instance of a Nigerian leader’s visit being turned down in a leaked email between Nigeria and Qatar.
A similar letter from 2022 revealed that the visit by former President Muhammadu Buhari was rescheduled by the Qatari government due to “the proposed dates being unsuitable.”
The Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, invited Buhari to visit, but the Qatari administration expressed worries that the suggested dates were “too soon.”
“On the cusp” of hosting the FIFA World Cup 2022 from November 20 to December 18, 2022.
Starting on March 5, 2023, Buhari will go to attend the 5th United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries.