Throughout President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s official go to to the United Arab Emirates to take part within the 2026 version of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW), Nigeria introduced that it’ll co-host Investopia with the UAE in Lagos in February. The initiative is aimed toward attracting international traders and accelerating sustainable funding inflows into Nigeria.
Nigeria has additionally concluded a Complete Financial Partnership Settlement (CEPA) with the UAE to deepen cooperation in key sectors similar to renewable power, infrastructure, logistics, and digital commerce. The settlement is anticipated to considerably strengthen commerce relations and ship tangible advantages for Nigerian companies, professionals, and staff.
General, this increasing commerce and financial relationship between Nigeria and the UAE represents a welcome improvement for each nations, with the potential to drive progress, job creation, and long-term financial collaboration.
Nevertheless, on the worldwide safety entrance, the UAE is more and more considered by a extra complicated lens. Over the previous decade, the nation has pursued a extra assertive international coverage, significantly in elements of the Center East and Africa.
The UAE has confronted allegations and scrutiny from some governments, worldwide organizations, media shops, human rights teams, and analysts relating to its involvement in conflict-affected and politically fragile environments. These debates typically centre on whether or not UAE actions have influenced or intensified current crises, particularly in a number of Muslim-majority nations.
In Sudan, varied experiences have alleged that the UAE was concerned within the provide of weapons, together with drones, to actors within the ongoing battle. Some accounts declare that arms transfers had been routed by neighbouring nations similar to Chad, Libya, and Uganda, and that humanitarian operations served as logistical cowl. Emirati authorities have denied these allegations, sustaining that the UAE helps humanitarian reduction efforts and political options to the disaster.
In Yemen, the UAE was a key member of the Saudi-led coalition opposing the Iran-aligned Houthi motion. On the identical time, analysts have pointed to UAE help for the Southern Transitional Council (STC), which seeks larger autonomy or independence for southern Yemen. Critics argue that this help contributed to political fragmentation, whereas others describe it as a practical response to native safety challenges and counter-terrorism targets.
In Libya, the UAE has incessantly been cited in worldwide experiences as a serious exterior supporter of forces led by Khalifa Haftar and the Libyan Nationwide Military. Allegations embrace the supply of army help throughout operations in opposition to Tripoli-based authorities. UAE officers have constantly rejected claims of direct army involvement, emphasizing their help for stability and counter-extremism.
In Somalia and the broader Horn of Africa, some observers have raised considerations about UAE engagement with regional authorities and safety actors, significantly in Puntland and Somaliland, suggesting that such involvement could have influenced inside political and safety dynamics.
Extra just lately, the federal authorities of Somalia introduced the cancellation of all agreements with the UAE, together with offers masking port operations, safety cooperation, and defence. Somali authorities cited alleged violations of nationwide sovereignty as the rationale for the choice. The UAE, nevertheless, maintains that its actions in Somalia and the area are carried out inside frameworks of cooperation, improvement help, and mutual safety pursuits.
In 2022, america Treasury sanctioned six Nigerian people for allegedly elevating funds within the UAE to help Boko Haram. This adopted earlier actions by UAE authorities in 2021, when people had been arrested and prosecuted for working a fundraising community linked to the group. Regardless of these incidents, Nigeria–UAE relations stay largely centered on funding, commerce, and broader financial cooperation.
Zayyad I. Muhammad, Abuja
