Hot SourceThe recent 2025 European Day celebration did not come and go without leaving on its trails some notes for file. But to cap this and give it meaning was the European Union (EU) Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Gautier Mignot, who spoke to Michael Olugbodeon many issues, including the importance of Nigeria to Europe, the drive to have more skilled Nigerians going to work in Europe and developing the human capital of Africa’s most populous nation, among others. Excerpts:
What’s the essence of the European Day being celebrated in May?
Every year, we celebrate Europe Day on the 9th of May because we commemorate what was the starting point of the European integration process that led to the European Union as it is today. It was on the 9th of May 1950 that the so-called Schuman Declaration was proclaimed, which was the first offer by the then French foreign minister to other countries in Europe to launch into this integration process.
It was accepted at the time by five other countries and there were six founding member states. So, this year we are celebrating 75 years of the Schuman Declaration. We decided to do a whole Europe month with different activities, in particular with media engagements, but also with universities. We were in Sokoto also these last few days with nine member states ambassadors.
We have joint activities with our member states, and also because in the current geopolitical context, we think it’s very important to reaffirm what we stand for in Europe and remind our citizens and the world what is the significant of the European integration. Also, we want to engage more with Nigeria and to explain to Nigerian people who we are and what is the purpose of the stronger partnership we want to build.
What are the reasons for the celebration, especially in terms of achievements?
Well, if you look back to 75 years ago, Europe was still very much in ruins after World War II. We thought we were on the verge of a third world war. We just didn’t know what to do with Germany, which had been defeated and divided.
And this Schumer Declaration and this European integration process were really a turning point where we launched into a completely new kind of relationship in Europe, breaking with the former century of relations based on domination, rivalry, power politics, to go into a relationship of cooperation, of equal partnership, of shared sovereignty. The result is tremendous.
Today, a war between our member states is just unthinkable. We went from six founding member states to 27 today. We have 450 million inhabitants, a GDP comparable to the US or China. We are leading in trade of goods and services. We have a society based on free economy and market economy, but also on civil liberties and on social inclusion, which is very attractive.
We have a region attracting more tourists, students, migrants. And we have eight member states, eight candidate members, candidate countries, which want to become members of the European Union.
Our model is attractive. It’s a success. Of course, it has also its shortcomings and weaknesses and challenges that we want to address. But I think we can be proud of what we’ve achieved over these 75 years. And we want also to offer, to propose to the rest of the world, to follow a little bit the same recipe that has made this success for us, based on cooperation.
Talking about war in Europe. There’s an ongoing one between Ukraine and Russia. Where has this left the EU?
Of course, it’s a war, which actually is rather an aggression by Russia against Ukraine. None of them are members of the European Union. Ukraine is a candidate country now. And with Russia, we have tried during decades to engage in the same kind of relationship of shared prosperity, of cooperation.
But the Russians have always rejected this approach. They have always insisted on power politics, and trying to dominate, undermine, occupy the neighbours, until this full-scale invasion of Ukraine. So it’s not only disrupting European security, and with Russia trampling all the treaties it had signed, to solemnly promise to respect Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In 1991, when the USSR broke down, and Ukraine became an independent country, with Russia on its side. But it also disrupts the world order and the world supply chains, especially in food, fertilizers, etc. So it has very serious consequences, and this is why we are unwavering in our support to Ukraine, to resist this invasion, and to uphold the principles of the UN Charter, of international law.
And we think that it’s only on this basis that a just and lasting peace can be found. So, there are efforts to engage in serious negotiations. Unfortunately, Russia hasn’t shown any sign of willingness to engage seriously in peace negotiations.
Do you see an end to this war?
All wars end one day or the other. And the question is, on which basis, and if it’s a lasting peace or not. We knew this very well in Europe. We had the First World War, and we only had 20 years of peace, until another, even more brutal World War came. So you have to build solid pieces, a solid foundation for that.
So, yes, the question is, when will Russia realise, and probably under the pressure of others, that’s why the pressure by all the international community is so important; that they have to resist, they have to respect Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. At the end of the day, any settlement must be freely negotiated by Ukraine itself. That’s the concept of sovereignty.
Is there a time the EU will feel that this war is a success?
I mean, this war will never be a success. This war is a terrible thing happening to Ukraine first and to the world. So it’s a crime against the planet, because it’s wasting dozens and dozens of billions of dollars. Without speaking of human lives, of course, which are the most important, but it’s also wasting so much money that could be used for better causes– for fighting poverty, for sustainable development, climate change, adaptation, mitigation, etc.
However, this war will be a success if the principles of the UN Charter are upheld. Sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the prohibition of use of force against your neighbours. I think Ukraine has already successfully resisted.
Remember that Putin thought that in three days he would conquer Ukraine. It’s been three years now, and he has already advanced. So, from a military point of view, the Ukrainians can say that they have contained this invasion to some part, but still more or less one-fifth of the territory is occupied by Russia illegally. So, we have to uphold international law. That is very important.
Expectedly, the US President has stepped in with some proposals. What is the EU saying concerning these proposals by President Trump?
We think that any goodwill effort towards peace is welcome. But again, we shouldn’t be ingenious. To negotiate peace, you must have willingness on both sides. There is a willingness, clear willingness on the Ukrainian side. Not at any cost, of course, but there is a willingness. And there is no such willingness on the Russian side.
So you have to force Putin to negotiate, and for this, we need pressure by all sides. The US, China, India, in particular all the democratic countries in the world. And we are very glad to see that Nigeria has been very consistent in condemning the Russian invasion to Ukraine at the United Nations General Assembly. That’s very important, and that’s very commendable on the part of the Nigerian diplomacy.
But why is it taking long to bring Ukraine into the EU fold?
Ukraine is a very new candidate country. Its candidacy negotiations were already open, which was really very quick. But the accession process always takes many years. It takes, in most cases, at least 10 years or so. So Ukraine has been advancing already very fast in this process.
It will take more years even if the war stops, until Ukraine becomes a member state of the European Union. There are other member states, other candidate countries, which are negotiating their accession for years and years, for 15 years or more. So, Ukraine has not been going slowly in this process.
Why such a long time to process accession?
Acceding to the European Union is very demanding. You have to meet very demanding criteria. Criteria in terms of rule of law, respect for democracy and human rights first. And enduring in time, of course.But also criteria in terms of economic policies, of integrating all the EU legislation into EU national law. Having the administrative capacities to do so, to implement this legislation. And also having the economic capacity to enter into the European single market. It requires a lot of efforts by a candidate country.
What are the ideals of the EU?
We stand for a world, a multipolar world where you shouldn’t have the law of the strongest. But a multipolar world based on rules, based on the principles of the UN Charters, a world where all nations’ interests and sovereignty are respected and taken into account.
A more prosperous and sustainable world with free trade; a fairer world also with a better repartition of power and of economic opportunities. And we are promoting also a model of society based on this combination of civil liberties, economic efficiency and social inclusion, which is our DNA in Europe, the basis of our success.
We think that we encourage others to follow this path and also follow the path of regional integration. This is what we stand for, and this is a powerful model. This is why others are trying also to undermine our offer and spread disinformation, especially in Africa on what the EU is trying to do, saying that we are here to exploit the African people and exploit raw materials. And that we just want to keep Africans in poverty, which is exactly the contrary to what we are trying to do.
What does Nigeria represent for the EU?
Well, for us, Nigeria is a major player. Not only for the future, but also for the present. A few days ago, I paid a very interesting courtesy call to His Excellency, the Vice-President, KashimShettima, and he reminded us that already 25% of Africans are Nigerians, and in 2050, it will be one third. So Nigeria is a giant. It’s a giant in Africa, it’s a giant in the world.
West Africa as a whole is a neighbouring region for us. We have many links – human, cultural, economic – that we’ve had for a very long time. So, our destinies are intertwined –are very much linked. The EU cannot go well if things go wrong in West Africa, and vice versa. That’s why the interest we’re pursuing in West Africa and Nigeria is basically about promoting prosperity, stability, sustainable development,have a friendly and strong partnership and relationship. A partnership among equals and based on shared values. So,this is what we are trying to promote with Nigeria in particular.
How does the EU engage with Nigeria?
First, through trade. We are already Nigeria’s first trading partner. More or less 28% of Nigeria’s foreign trade is with EU companies, with the EU. Actually, Nigeria benefits very much from it, with more than 10 billion dollars surplus. Unlike its relationship with other important trade partners, with whom it has a deficit.
With the EU, it has a trade surplus, and a significant one. And we are also the first export market for Nigeria’s non-oil exports. In terms of investment, we are also historically the first partner, the first source of foreign direct investment. One third of the existing foreign direct investment in Nigeria comes from the EU.
It’s a quality investment in terms of environment norms and respectful labour laws, for instance. Third, we are engaging with cooperation, with partnership on green economy, on climate smart agriculture, on renewable energy, on digital innovation, on health, but also on education, social protection, and humanitarian aid for the most destitute.
What we want to do is for this cooperation to benefit the citizens, people in Nigeria, and leverage more investments, create more opportunities, more jobs. This is what we call the Global Gateway Strategy, which is our new cooperation strategy for the world, and in particular here in Africa, to try to articulate more cooperation with the private sector, and with investment projects.
This is basically what our engagement is about. But, also, in terms of people-to-people contacts, we have many Nigerian students going to study in Europe, for instance. In terms of science and innovation, we would like to negotiate an agreement with Nigeria on this. In terms of migration, we have to engage also on a comprehensive partnership, to manage in a coordinated way together migration flows. So yeah, a very wide agenda, and we want to strengthen our partnership with Nigeria on all of this.
In what other areas does Nigeria benefit from Europe?
Well, basically trade and investment, and in terms of cooperation, we are bringing from the EU, apart from what our individual member states also bring, 730 million euros of grants in the period 2021 to 2027, plus loans with very low interest rates from the European Investment Bank, the EIB, and now we have a new bank also coming to Nigeria to complement this offer, which is the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, extending its mandate to Nigeria.
We have, plus our humanitarian aid, some 50 million euros annually from the European Union, and our member states put more or less the same amount, focusing really on the most destitute. It’s also a reliable and constant partnership. Unlike others who are withdrawing, changing their mindsets and reducing their support, we are staying on course, we are keeping our commitments with Nigeria, and we are maintaining our cooperation. In these troubled geopolitical times, you need some stable and reliable partners, and this is what we want to be to Nigeria, and we feel that Nigeria is also for us.
Nigeria aside, what do Nigerians have to gain from Europe?
The citizens in Nigeria have a lot of talents, and we can see this in the digital sector, for instance, where we are very much helping entrepreneurship, for instance young people, young women in particular, to develop their skills and their entrepreneurial projects. We have a network of digital transformation centres, for instance, which are doing this, and we have also several programmes to help young people to enhance their skills.
In the digital sector, we support the three million technical talents project of the federal government. We also support the Nigeria Jubilee Fellowship Programme to help young people to find internships and facilitate the integration to the labour market. Nigeria is a country with a lot of human capacities in particular, and so we want to very much help develop this, because for us it can create opportunities for business, for skills.
We need skills in Europe also, so we want to have skilled Nigerians coming to Europe, but without promoting a brain drain in Nigeria, because Nigeria also needs professionals. I want to talk about that. We know that the population in Europe is mostly getting old, and we have a vibrant, young, and educated, well-skilled population in Nigeria.
What are the migration pathways that can facilitate easy migration, labour migration from Nigeria to the European countries?
Until now, the labour migration has been primarily a competence of national competence in the EU, of member states. But now we have a pact on asylum and migration in the EU, and we want to act in a more united way between the EU member states. What we want is to partner countries like Nigeria to decide who is coming to Europe based on the necessity of our labour markets.
The availability of these skills in Nigeria, of professionals willing to work in Europe, and without taking away from Nigeria the professionals needed here. So, we have to do this in an organised way. Today, people are sometimes going through illegal pathways, sometimes most frequently with very tough experiences, and they don’t get there. We have programmes for return, and re-admission, and support reintegration in the local communities.
We want to have legal migration pathways agreed and organised together with the member states and with our partners like Nigeria. This is something we have to work on. We also have programmes to fight migrant smuggling, trafficking of human beings, which is a spreading phenomenon. And, of course, proceedings of return for migrants, illegal migrants. But our policy in Europe is based on respect for the rights of people and protection of persons more than anything.
Lately, China has been asserting more presence in Nigeria. Is the EU threatened by this close relationship between Nigeria and China?
No, we respect absolutely the right of Nigeria and other countries to have other partners. This is a multiple world, and we don’t demand any kind of exclusivity. So, it’s fair for Nigeria to engage with other partners. We have different offers.
Our offer is different from China’s offer or from the offers of other countries in the world. It is based on the principles I have recalled, which I don’t think that China, for instance, follows the same path or the same kind of actions. For instance, in Europe, we don’t have infrastructure built, bringing our workforce and our companies to do the work here.
We rely on local workforce and companies to build, for instance, the photovoltaic park or mini-grids that we finance in rural areas, to name just one example. So, we don’t feel threatened, but we know there are other offers in the relationship. We think that our partnership is special because, again, we are neighbours, with destinies intertwine.
We are close to each other, and I think that makes a real difference. The fact that our partnership is based on the respect for sovereignty, real care for sustainable development, for having a win-win partnership so that all cooperation benefits to the people here, makes it particularly valuable.
As the EU ambassador to ECOWAS, you are aware of the upheavals in the regional body, like the exit of three member states, and the challenges they have with France. What is your take on the situation, and how is it affecting your relationship with West Africa in general?
As I mentioned earlier, our experience in Europe shows that we are stronger together as a region. Integration is better than disintegration. Everybody wins with integration, everybody loses with disintegration. We have always been very much supportive in the 50 years of existence of ECOWAS, of this regional organisation, and we still are. We also have a sizable cooperation, second to none, with ECOWAS.
And, of course, we encourage very much ECOWAS and its member countries to find a new way of coexistence, a relationship with their neighbours in the three exiting countries. You can’t change geography. You remain neighbours even if you don’t belong to the same regional integration organisation. We went through this experience in Europe with Brexit, when the UK decided to leave the EU, and we have tried from day one on the EU side to engage positively with the UK to shape a new relationship.
I think that little by little, we have advanced quite a long way to build this new relationship with our British neighbours in France. Hopefully things can follow the same path here in West Africa, and perhaps at some point governments can reconsider also under the pressure of the people, because the people, I think, in West Africa, like in Europe, have a sense of belonging together.
Are you still expecting Britain to have a rethink on BREXIT?
This is not on the agenda. As I mentioned earlier, getting in and also getting out of the European Union is not a simple matter, it’s not a simple process. If at some point the UK would like to apply again for candidate, it could be a long complex process certainly but it is not on the agenda neither on UK side and nor on the EU side. Brexit is a fact, and we are working closer and closer with UK in the framework of this new reality.
You are new in Nigeria, btu what do you feel differently about Nigeria since you came, and what legacy would you want to leave behind?
Very good question, you mean how has my look of Nigeria changed over the first eight months? I think I have grasped the richness, diversity, complexity of this country. Its diversity of cultures, of tribes, of tongues and traditions, that is what makes this country complex and fascinating.
The richness of its culture. I have been to Calabar for a carnival, to Katsina for the durbar, we went to Sokoto in the last few days and I found out it is such a rich culture, which unfortunately is not sufficiently known in Europe, and which I think we should work on, make the Europeans and other people of the world more acquitted of the richness of Nigerian traditions.
The legacy I would like to leave behind is a strengthenedpartnership so that we really manage to leverage on more investments, create more jobs, more opportunities. To meet all these objectives, I have mentioned in terms of migration for instance. Also to help Nigeria on the path to peace and stability. And of course you have to be very humble as an ambassador.
First to be aware that what we are bringing as an international community is just a small contribution but the future of Nigerians lies in the hands of Nigerians, of the leaders of the people. We are here to simply help to accelerate at some point. We are not here to dictate anything. We are not the one who are going to change things, we can just help to accelerate a little bit, and if we are able to do this, we have already achieved a lot.
You are an ambassador for you are smaller than what you represent. It is not about one’s legacy but about how you can contribute to an history of relationship between so many people, between two giants in Africa and in Europe, Nigeria and EU. And if I could help bring forward some of these issues during my tenure, I would be very happy.
One issue which I would want to draw your attention to is this issue on Northwest and Northeast Nigeria. We are launching a package of new projects, new cooperation projects of about €300 million in grant from the Team Europe, from the EU and our member states and that was why I went to Sokoto a few days ago because we have a strong support for the Northeast in the last 15 years but we want also to do more for the Northwest.
So, we are launching in Sokoto, three more cooperation projects in social protection, woman and adolescent reproductive health and in solution for internally displaced persons, and we want to review projects of humanitarian support and education. We are coming stronger to the Northwest and the northern part of the country in general.
