After Nigeria Visit, PM Modi Heads To Rio For G20 Summit: Here’s A Look At His Schedule – News18

Last Updated:November 17, 2024, 22:41 IST

PM Modi thanked Nigeria for a productive visit that he said would invigorate the friendship between India and the West African country.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi concluded a productive visit to Nigeria, where he became the first Indian leader to visit in 17 years, and emplaned for Brazil to take part in the high-level G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro followed by a trip to Guyana.

As he left Abuja, PM Modi thanked Nigeria for a productive visit, saying it will add strength to the India-Nigeria friendship. During his visit, he was conferred with Nigeria’s second highest national honour ‘The Grand Commander of The Order of the Niger’ by Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Modi arrived in the Nigerian capital early Sunday and was greeted with a warm welcome from the Indian diaspora. He also held a closed-door meeting with Nigerian President Tinubu and held discussions in advancing mutual cooperation in economy, energy, agriculture, security, fintech, small and medium state enterprises and cultural areas. Both leaders signed several bilateral agreements during the interaction.

Later in the day, Modi addressed the Indian community in Nigeria, where he lauded the role of the diaspora in contributing to the development of the West African country. He also mentioned that the Hindi language was becoming more popular and expressed commitment to the prosperity of both countries.

PM Modi’s Engagements In Brazil

Prime Minister Modi is expected to land at Rio at 5:30 am IST ahead of the 19th G20 Summit as a Troika member and is also expected to hold separate meetings with world leaders. Outgoing US President Joe Biden and China’s Xi Jinping will be among the participating world leaders in Rio de Janeiro on November 18-19. India is part of the G20 Troika along with Brazil and South Africa. This would be PM Modi’s third visit to Brazil after the BRICS Summits in 2014 and 2019.

In September last year, India hosted the successful G20 Summit in New Delhi, where it scored a major diplomatic victory by convincing world leaders on a common ground to include the Russia-Ukraine war in the New Delhi Declaration. As the chair, India also brought the African Union into the G20 bloc in a major push towards voicing the priorities of the Global South on a global stage.

The theme for this year’s G20 Summit is ‘Building a Just World and a Sustainable Planet’ where Brazil would prioritise the issues of social inclusion, poverty, sustainable development and reform of global governance institutions. This summit is significant as it would carry on from the priorities laid out by India last year .

“This year, Brazil has built upon India’s legacy. I look forward to meaningful discussions in keeping with our vision of ‘One Earth, One Family, One Future’. I will also use the opportunity to exchange views on furthering bilateral cooperation with several other leaders,” Modi said before his departure to Nigeria.

In last year’s New Delhi Summit, India had raised the critical issue of hunger and poverty along with reform of global governance institutions, which broadly align with key priorities under the Brazilian presidency. India also envisioned the Empowerment of Women Working Group that was convened for the first time earlier this year to fuel women-led development in the G20.

PM Modi’s Visit To Guyana

In his third and final trip, the Prime Minister will visit Guyana from November 19 to 21 at the invitation of President Mohamed Irfaan Ali. He will be the first Indian PM to visit the country in over 50 years.

There has been an uptick in high-level engagements between India and Guyana, with President Ali visiting the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in January last year and Prime Minister Mark Philips visiting India in February 2024. PM Modi is expected to hold delegation-level talks with President Ali and will address the National Assembly of Guyana and the Indian community there.

Diplomatic relations between India and Guyana have existed since 1965 and roughly 40% of the population of 800,000 in the South American country is of Indian origin, as many Indians migrated there 185 years ago. India also shares a long-standing development partnership with Guyana in the fields of health, connectivity and renewable power.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister will also co-chair the second India-CARICOM (Caribbean Community) Summit along with the Prime Minister of Grenada who is the current Chair of CARICOM. “The Summit will enable us to renew historical ties and expand our cooperation into new domains,” he said.