Britain’s King Charles III on Wednesday revealed that visitors from Nigeria spent £178 million in Britain in 2024.
The monarch added that 251,000 people from Britain travelled to Nigeria and spent just as much, in return.
King Charles disclosed this while delivering a speech at the state banquet hosted in honour of President Bola Tinubu and his wife, Oluremi Tinubu on Wednesday.
“I was pleased to see that visitors from Nigeria spent £178 million in Britain in 2024, and 251,000 people from Britain travelled to Nigeria and spent just as much, in return,” the monarch said.
On Tuesday, Mr Tinubu, accompanied by the First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, arrived in the United Kingdom for a two-day historic State Visit on the invitation of Their Majesties King Charles III and Queen Camilla.
The state visit is the first by a Nigerian leader in 37 years. President Tinubu is also the first Nigerian leader to be hosted by the British monarch at Windsor Castle.
The visit, according to the government, aims to strengthen bilateral relations and to explore investment opportunities for businessmen from both nations.
Speaking on Wednesday, the king highlighted the deep economic ties between both countries, citing Nigerian investments in the United Kingdom and British investments in Nigeria.
“Your visit has provided the opportunity to celebrate the fact that Nigeria is investing in Britain’s future as much as Britain is investing in Nigeria’s – leading Nigerian banks have chosen the City of London as a global base, examples of the best Nigerian companies have listed on London’s Stock Exchange, and U.K. Export Finance is supporting investment in Nigeria’s ports.”
In education, he said British schools and universities are opening their doors in Nigeria, and British and Nigerian technology companies are forming ever closer partnerships.
He acknowledged the contributions of Nigerians living in the UK, who have excelled in various fields.
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“We in the United Kingdom are blessed that so many people of Nigerian heritage, having chosen Britain as their home, are now at the heart of British life through excelling at the highest levels of business, technology, academia, law, science, sport, literature and the arts, and public service,” he said.
According to him, Nigeria became the United Kingdom’s biggest export market in Africa in January.
“In January of this year, Nigeria became the United Kingdom’s biggest export market in Africa and whilst I hear that in Nigeria the phrase ‘Made in U.K.’ has always symbolised the highest quality, it evidently now has a distinctively Nigerian flavour.”
He noted that the friendship between the two countries is a partnership of equals that has brought them both enormous benefits.
“It has been described to me as a deeply spiritual connection – beyond churches and mosques – a deep bond through which we have strengthened our shared security, ensured our economies are more prosperous, and empowered each other to believe in a more hopeful future,” he added.
