President Abdullah Gül’s visit to Nigeria for the D-8 Summit was an incomparable experience for the businessmen and academics that were part of the official Turkish delegation. We learned there that the trade volume between our countries increases with every passing year, many Turkish companies are already in place, commercial ties are developing and important investments have already been made. Domestic political developments often prevent us from noticing that Turkey is present abroad now more than ever, not only in its immediate vicinity but also in far away regions. It would be better if internal developments didn’t shackle our country’s external relations.
Nigeria, a regional power, leads the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). It is in a serious quest for economic development, and it already has stronger economic and political stability than its neighbors. Abuja doesn’t want to be only known as an oil producer, but also as a country that can process it, with solid industrial infrastructure and improved agriculture. It is trying to overcome difficulties in the health and education sectors and to fight unemployment and poverty.
As in many other countries, there is a debate about what to do in order to assure development and political stability. This debate between rival political groups, which is already very harsh, is exacerbated by ethnic and religious rivalries. However, all these divergent groups are united by a common feeling about the “foreigners.” Historical and sociological realities have influenced Nigerians not to trust foreigners, even though they know they have to work with them. Their distrust is not totally unfounded, although they may easily make some generalizations such as that all “white men” are the same.
Nigeria’s elite in Europe have acquired some negative feelings and doubts about Turkey, as they have internalized what Europeans say about us. There are even people who genuinely believe that Turkey is an underdeveloped desert country where people travel on camels; largely because of this prejudice, they reject Turks who propose building hospitals and schools in their country. However, thanks to these kinds of visits the number of Turks who know Nigeria and vice versa increases, everyone learns about each other’s sensibilities and Nigerians get the opportunity to see for themselves that not all white men are colonialists. Furthermore, Turkish businessmen help local entrepreneurs overcome habits from another era, when Christians did business only with foreign Christians and Muslims with foreign Muslims.
There are people in Nigeria, like in all countries, who resist their country’s integration to the world. This resistance is particularly rigorous among radical circles, and Muslim radicals are especially full of doubts about Turks. Happily, those who are convinced of the benefits of developing bilateral ties are more numerous. Naturally, the relationship has to be developed not only in the military and economic fields but also in the human dimension.
It makes us feel proud when we see that we have a president who actively supports all these initiatives. Patience, goodwill and constructive cooperation are keys to becoming a more powerful country, not only in foreign policy, but also in domestic politics.
