By Gloria Ikibah
Nigeria and Jamaica have signed an Agreement on Technical Assistance to strengthen bilateral cooperation and expand the impact of Nigeria’s Technical Aid Corps (TAC) Programme in the Caribbean country.
The agreement was signed on Friday, September 25, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, following a meeting between Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, and Jamaica’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Senator Kamina Johnson Smith.
The signing formed part of several bilateral engagements by Odumegwu-Ojukwu on the sidelines of the high-level meeting of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Ahead of the signing, the two ministers discussed ways to deepen relations between Nigeria and Jamaica and promote greater people-to-people exchanges.
Johnson Smith expressed the Jamaican government’s appreciation for the contribution of Nigeria’s Technical Aid Corps to the country’s development, particularly in health, education and local fabric artisanry.
She also expressed Jamaica’s interest in receiving additional Nigerian professionals, particularly nurses and teachers, through the programme.
The Jamaican minister said the TAC programme had made a significant impact on communities in Jamaica, with its benefits extending beyond the transfer of technical skills to cultural and creative exchanges between the two countries.
She cited the development of “JADIRE”, which combines Jamaican designs with Nigeria’s traditional Adire tie-and-dye textile technique, as an example of the programme’s lasting impact.
The concept was developed by Jamaican artisans after receiving training through the Technical Aid Corps Programme in 2018.
Both ministers acknowledged the potential for expanding cooperation between Nigeria and Jamaica and agreed to explore additional areas of mutual interest through existing and other bilateral platforms.
The meeting ended with the formal signing of the Agreement on Technical Assistance, reaffirming the two countries’ commitment to strengthening their longstanding bilateral ties and advancing practical cooperation for mutual benefit.
