Vice President Kashim Shettima on Thursday held talks with United Nations Secretary General António Guterres at the UN Headquarters in New York, pressing Nigeria’s case for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council and exploring ways to deepen cooperation with the global body.
Shettima emphasized that Nigeria is ready to take on greater responsibilities within the international system, urging stronger UN support as the country advances its diplomatic ambitions. The discussions also touched on climate change, the Sustainable Development Goals, the promotion of democracy across Africa and closer collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme.
After the meeting, Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar told reporters that Guterres recognized Nigeria’s leadership role on the continent and welcomed its push for a Security Council seat.
The talks further explored Nigeria’s growing footprint in technology. Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, disclosed that artificial intelligence was high on the agenda. Guterres praised Nigeria’s recent launch of Africa’s first government backed multilingual and multimodal language model and urged the country to help other African nations harness AI for inclusive growth.
Humanitarian issues were also raised. Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Dr Yusuf Tanko Sununu, highlighted the scale of ongoing interventions, noting that Nigeria’s social register now covers nearly 18.9 million households, with over 8 million Nigerians already benefiting from conditional cash transfers. He pointed out the strain caused by declining donor support, including recent cuts by the World Food Programme that affected 1.3 million people, but said the UN pledged to back efforts aimed at cushioning the impact.
Earlier in the day, Shettima met with UK Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy. Both sides agreed to expand cooperation in areas including trade, defence, the economy and migration.
The Vice President also addressed the Global Leadership Council Meeting at UNICEF Headquarters, where he reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to digital innovation, youth participation and women’s empowerment. He stressed that inclusivity is a central pillar of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, adding that women remain the backbone of society and that empowering them is vital for national progress.
