By David Torough, Abuja

President Bola Tinubu yesterday announced the establishment of diplomatic relations with Saint Lucia, describing it as a “symbolic bridge that will provide a gateway in fostering closer ties between us.”Tinubu stated this while addressing a special joint session of the Senate and House of Assembly of Saint Lucia at the William Jefferson Clinton Ballroom, Sandals Grande, Gros Islet, Saint Lucia.

The President proposed creating a Joint Commission or Political Consultation Agreement as a mechanism for structured cooperation between Nigeria and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). Tinubu also announced that he would offer full scholarships to students from the OECS to promote cultural understanding, further strengthening the bond between Nigeria and the Eastern Caribbean states.The Nigerian leader, who delivered his address in the presence of leaders from the OECS, emphasised the deep historical and cultural bonds between Nigeria and the OECS and called for greater people-to-people engagement.The leaders of Grenada, Antigua and Barbuda, St Kitts and Nevis, Dominica, the Premier of Montserrat, Saint Martin and Saint Vincent were in the audience.Tinubu declared Nigeria’s openness to visa waivers for OECS diplomatic and official passport holders and urged reciprocal gestures to facilitate smoother official travel and closer institutional cooperation.Tinubu in a statement by his spokesman was quoted as saying: “I respectfully urge a reciprocal gesture to enable smoother movement of officials and foster closer institutional cooperation.”He reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to deepening ties with OECS and Caribbean nations, anchored in shared African heritage and Pan-African ideals.On economic diplomacy and trade, President Tinubu offered OECS access to Africa’s largest market and called for joint ventures and deeper commercial ties.He advocated enhanced trade and investment partnerships, especially in agriculture, manufacturing, and services that would position Nigeria as a supplier and destination for OECS exports.Tinubu proposed a maritime university collaboration and extended Nigeria’s Technical Aid Corps (TAC) programme to OECS countries.He emphasised Nigeria’s readiness to provide skilled education, healthcare, and engineering professionals to support regional capacity-building.Recognising the existential climate threats facing small island states, Tinubu called for joint research on adaptation strategies, sustainable agriculture, disaster preparedness, and climate-induced migration.Reiterating Nigeria’s Afrocentric foreign policy, Tinubu emphasised the cultural and historical ties between Nigeria and the diaspora, as well as its enduring role in global Black solidarity.While calling for unity, Tinubu quoted Marcus Garvey and an African proverb. “Likewise, an African proverb teaches us: ‘If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.’ Let us journey together, united in purpose and fortified by our common heritage,” he said.Most Saint Lucian Formerly Enslaved People Were NigeriansPresident of the Saint Lucian Senate, Alvina Reynolds, underscored Nigeria’s and Saint Lucian ancestral links by quoting the result of a British census conducted on the island in 1815, which showed that most of the residents came from Nigeria. “Of the 16,282 enslaved people in Saint Lucia that year, 3,488 were born in Africa. Of these, 34% were from Nigeria, 11% from Nigeria-Cameroon, and 22% from the Congo. The remaining 12,794 were born in Saint Lucia, with most of their forefathers coming from Senegambia and Nigeria.”She reeled out the figures in her address as she welcomed President Bola Tinubu to the joint session of the Lucian bicameral parliament on Monday.She said President Tinubu’s presence is historic for this Parliament and the people of Saint Lucia.She noted that the legacy of the transatlantic slave trade, which spanned more than 350 years, forged an unbreakable historical and cultural link between Africa and the Caribbean.She described President Tinubu’s arrival as the rekindling of “a mission to reunite us with our homeland and for our people to work together.”The Senate President also paid tribute to one of Saint Lucia’s most distinguished sons, Sir Darnley Alexander. Alexander journeyed to Nigeria in 1957 and rose through the legal ranks to become the Chief Justice of Nigeria from 1975 to 1979—the only non-Nigerian to hold the office in Nigeria’s post-independence history.Recognising President Tinubu’s long-standing role in defending democracy and championing good governance in Nigeria, the Senate president said:In his response to President Tinubu’s speech, Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre described the State Visit as a moment of “freedom and celebration” and a powerful symbol of the enduring spiritual and cultural bond between the Caribbean and Africa.He noted the deep ancestral and emotional ties between the people of Saint Lucia and West Africa, describing Saint Lucia as “a small fragment of Africa” where the “genetic Nigerian connection cannot be erased, and a shared cultural chord cannot be broken.”In comparing the size of both nations, the Prime Minister humorously said that Saint Lucia’s population is smaller than that of Eti-Osa Local Government in Lagos State, but affirmed the island’s pride as a sovereign nation “with a heart and spirit deeply connected to the world, Nigeria, and West Africa.”The Prime Minister highlighted the invaluable contributions of the Nigerian community to Saint Lucia’s society, especially in healthcare, religion, cuisine, tourism, and social development.Underscoring the deep literary and historical ties between the two countries, he recalled the legacy of Nobel laureates Wole Soyinka and Derek Walcott, and the contribution of Saint Lucian-born jurist Sir Darnley Alexander, who served as Nigeria’s Chief Justice from 1975 to 1979.Reflecting on the relatively slow pace of Africa-Caribbean cooperation, the Prime Minister expressed optimism following the inaugural Africa-CARICOM Summit in 2021 and expressed readiness for the second summit scheduled for September in Addis Ababa.The Saint Lucian leader outlined several key areas of cooperation, including tourism, air connectivity, creative industries, sports exchange, banking, fintech, renewable energy, and medical collaboration.He noted that Saint Lucia hosts over one million tourists annually, but very few are from Nigeria due to the lack of direct air links between the two regions. “Establishing an air link would benefit Saint Lucia’s tourism and the wider Caribbean… This connectivity would boost tourism and enhance trade and investment, deepen the people-to-people exchanges, and the spiritual and cultural links between our populations.”Highlighting the role of culture and youth in rekindling ties, the Prime Minister cited the popularity of Nigerian Afrobeats, Nollywood films, and authors like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in Saint Lucia.He proposed concrete partnerships in the creative industries and sports development, especially football and cricket. He urged Nigerian investors and fintech companies to explore opportunities in Saint Lucia’s robust banking sector.He also welcomed Nigerian doctors, nurses, and specialists to support Saint Lucia’s ageing population and strengthen its healthcare system.The joint Session was attended by high-level dignitaries and leaders from across the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), including: Honourable Chet Greene, Representative of the Government of Antigua and Barbuda and Honourable Roosevelt Skerrit, Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Dominica.