Vice President Kashim Shettima is back in Nigeria following a week-long diplomatic mission to New York, where he stood in for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
His arrival was announced in a statement on Monday by his Senior Special Assistant on Media & Communications, Stanley Nkwocha.
According to him, Shettima left Abuja on September 20 carrying President Tinubu’s mandate to head Nigeria’s delegation to the high-profile global gathering and used the platform to push several of the country’s key foreign policy priorities.
Delivering President Tinubu’s National Statement at the General Debate, the Vice President repeated Nigeria’s demand for a reformed UN Security Council that grants Africa permanent representation, alongside calls for fairer global financing, stronger climate support and deeper multilateral cooperation.
He also featured at the Third High-Level Roundtable of the Africa Minerals Strategy Group, where President Tinubu’s position urging African nations to move from raw mineral exports toward processing, manufacturing and value addition was presented.
At a high-level education financing event jointly hosted by Nigeria and Italy, Senator Shettima restated Nigeria’s commitment to education as a vital investment in productivity, human capital and national prosperity, throwing his weight behind the Global Partnership for Education’s $5 billion financing campaign.
The Vice President further engaged Nigerians in the Diaspora, underlining the value of their investment, expertise and networks to the country’s development.
His schedule also included meetings with the new leadership of the ECOWAS Commission and UN Deputy Secretary General Amina J. Mohammed.
Throughout the trip, Senator Shettima pressed Nigeria’s positions on development financing, regional integration, economic cooperation, technology, and peace and security, echoing President Tinubu’s call for a more representative and equitable global order.
