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Negative Perception Greatest Obstacle to Nigeria-South Africa Relations, Says Consul-General Moroe
The Nigeria-South Africa Chamber of Commerce, in collaboration with MTN Nigeria, marked its 25th Anniversary on Wednesday with a commemorative event and unveiling ceremony at Eko Hotels and Suites, Lagos.
Speaking at the event, Dr Bobby Moroe, the South African Consul-General in Lagos, highlighted the long-standing challenge of misconceptions between both nations, stressing that addressing perception is vital to strengthening bilateral ties.
“One of the greatest pandemics that is facing South Africans and Nigerians is perception. South Africans have perceptions aboutNigerians. Nigerians have perceptions about South Africans. And what does a perception do to your brain? It becomes a reality over a period of time. And it becomes a lived experience,” he said.
Moroe further addressed visa-related issues and clarified that the South African mission has been working towards improving the process for Nigerian applicants.
“Our function as South African missions in Nigeria when it comes to immigration issues is not to reject visas. It will be counterproductive for anybody to strongly believe that our existence here is premised on an intention to reject visas… We issue more visas than we reject.”
Also speaking at the event, Foluso Phillips, a director of the Nigeria-South Africa Chamber of Commerce, underscored the importance of accurate storytelling and media’s role in shaping cross-border relations.
“It’s telling many sides of the story and not just one story. It’s going to the source to understand that perception is not the answer. The reality is you’ve got to try and see it. You’ve got to listen and hear from those that are involved in various things that we talk about, rather than just perception and hearsay, trying to encourage a higher level of interaction between the two countries at a much deeper level by the people that carry the news, that is the media.”
Dr Ije Jidenma, Chair of the Chamber, expressed optimism about the future of Nigeria-South Africa relations and noted that deeper collaborations and stronger partnerships are already being fostered.
“Having come this far, having laid the foundation, we are looking to a very, very bright future, a future that is galvanized by our coming together, the two countries, the key countries in the continent.”
She added that the Chamber is prioritising inclusivity by creating opportunities for young entrepreneurs. “We are actually even creating a category of membership for small and medium-scale enterprises so that we can begin to get the young ones, because they hold the future. There’s the digital economy, and they’re so at home with their digital natives. So we are welcoming them into our arms, and those in the creative industry as well, so that together we can work.”
Osayaba Giwa-Osagie, the past chairman of the Chamber, called for the implementation of existing bilateral agreements to foster stronger ties between both countries.
“I think some of the problems we are having are policy issues. There are a good number of agreements that have been signed in the past but have not been implemented. And I think it behooves on the two governments for directives to be given to the ministries that the bilateral agreements that have been signed in the past should be implemented. Over 42 of them, to my knowledge, have been signed. So it’s important that these agreements are implemented.”
Giwa-Osagie also stressed the need for stronger people-to-people engagement to break stereotypes and rebuild trust. “I think we need to interact more. We need to have more exchange programs. We need to have more Nigerian students in universities going to South Africa on courses or on visas, exchange programs. And our friends from South Africa are coming. The more we interact, the more we understand ourselves.”
The event also spotlighted MTN Nigeria’s partnership with the Chamber, marking 25 years of its operation in Nigeria and its contributions towards strengthening Nigeria-South Africa business and cultural relationships.