Nigeria plays a decisive role for stability and democracy in the region and has enormous economic potential. For Germany, the country is a central global partner with high-level political meetings being held regularly. Federal President Steinmeier visited Nigeria in December 2024 with a business delegation. The German-Nigerian Binational Commission, which was founded in 2011 and has working groups in the fields of business, energy, politics, culture and migration, last met in 2021. The return of the first Benin Bronzes to Nigeria by then Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock in December 2022 injected new impetus into cultural relations. In the fight against terrorist threats, the German Government is assisting with the training and equipping of the Nigerian security forces and contributing to transnational stabilisation projects.

Nigeria is Germany’s second-largest trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa. German business has been present in Nigeria since 1983 with an office of the German Chambers of Commerce Abroad. One priority of bilateral economic relations is cooperation in the energy sector. The German-Nigerian energy partnership, which has been in place since 2008, was expanded in 2021 in line with the Federal Government’s National Hydrogen Strategy with the opening of a Hydrogen Office in Abuja.

Priorities of development cooperation with Nigeria are sustainable economic development, vocational training and employment, as well as rural development, the expansion of renewables and healthcare.

Lagos has been home to the Goethe-Institut Nigeria since 1962. Enthusiasm about learning German is considerable. Since 2025 the Goethe-Institut has also been offering language courses in the capital Abuja. Many Nigerians are successful in applying for scholarships to study or conduct research in Germany. The Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, the Heinrich Böll Foundation and the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung have offices in Nigeria and are implementing projects on the ground.