RI, Nigeria set up BNC to boost ties

Indonesia and Nigeria recently signed an agreement to set up a Bi-National Commission (BNC) to foster relations and strengthen cooperation in various key areas, a Nigerian Embassy official said.

Indonesia’s Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa and Nigerian counterpart Henry Odein Ajumogobia signed the BNC on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly’s 65th session in New York, Nigeria’s The Punch newspaper reported Monday.

The BNC is aimed at bringing both countries’ business communities and officials together to discuss issues related to the economy, investment, trade, culture and technical cooperation, the daily said.

“It’s true that both countries have signed it,” Toko Ali Gongulong from the Nigerian Embassy in Jakarta told The Jakarta Post.

Nigeria, which will be celebrating 50 years of independence on Oct.1, is keen to establish close ties with Southeast Asia’s largest economy. Indonesia’s bilateral trade with Nigeria has been growing at a double digit rate in recent years. In 2009, the bilateral trade value surged to US$716.21 million, a huge jump from US$404.44 million registered in 2008.