The last Nigerian leader to visit the United Kingdom in an official capacity was General Ibrahim Babangida in 1989, when Nigeria was still under military rule. Since then, much has changed in the relationship between Abuja and London.

Since Nigeria gained its independence in 1960, the UK has come to regard the West African nation as a crucial player within the Commonwealth and a key regional power on the continent. Britain shares a host of common interests with its former colony. President Bola Tinubu's visitis seeking to capitalize on that.

Toby Chitayat, an associate at the London-based strategic and political risk consultancy MENAS, believes that relations between the two sides are generally strong.

"The UK is naturally conscious of Nigeria's role as one of Africa's great and rising economic powers and is keen to maintain healthy relations and to understand how it can benefit from access from Nigeria's large and growing market of consumers," Chitayat told DW.

Britain is keen to present its relationship with Nigeria as one of equal partners in a modern era: As is customary, the ceremonial welcome for President Tinubu and his wife, Oluremi, was hosted by King Charles III and other senior members of the Royal Family.

Having eschewed a welcome lunch on account of the President's fast during the holy month of Ramadan, both Tinubu and the King shared statements on the interwoven history of the two nations during a state banquet held at Windsor Castle on Wednesday evening.

In his address, Charles noted that there had been "chapters" in the partnership of the two countries, "that I know have left painful marks," which he said "no words" could dissolve.

Long before ascending the throne in 2022, Charles had already expressed a desire to focus his work on mending ties with nations that had emerged out of the British Empire's colonial past.

Are Tinubu's foreign trips bearing fruit? 

The two-day state visit to the UK can be regarded as the epitome of Tinubu's signature emphasis on high-stakes diplomacy; in the past three years, Tinubu has accrued countless air miles on foreign trips, trying to lure investors and strengthen diplomatic ties.

However, Leena Koni Hoffmann, an associate fellow at Chatham House, believes that the Nigerian leader's foreign policy approach has yet to pay dividends back home.

"So far, the president's prominent international profile has not largely translated into improvements in material conditions for most Nigerians," she writes in a post on the London-based policy institute's website.

Much to the contrary, the president's trips "have drawn criticism for their cost amid rising poverty, hunger and falling purchasing power back home," she further elaborates.

Chitayat agrees that Tinubu has to be mindful of optics during his state visit, especially at a time when "many Nigerians are struggling with the cost of living, and the US-Israel war with Iranthreatens a price shock at the pump that could risk provoking serious discontent if petrol prices continue to rise much further."

Focus on investment and trade

With Nigeria's presidential election, scheduled for January 2027, fast approaching, the clock is ticking for Tinubu to improve the economy in time, though he is widely expected to renew his mandate.

During his trip to the UK, Tinubu aims to strike further deals, hoping to improve livelihoods back home and maintain the upward trend which is mostly reflected in the markets but less so in the wallets of everyday Nigerians.

To this end, Tinubu is leveraging the power of the UK-Nigeria Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership (ETIP) agreement, which was signed in November 2024; the deal is meant to benefit both Nigeria, with its fragile trade sector and the UK, following its bumpy departure from the European Union in 2020 .

So far, much of ETIP's work has been on the softer side of diplomacy, in areas like higher education, the creative industries, healthcare and food regulations. But just in time for his trip, Tinubu managed to secure 746 million pounds (€863 million; $994 million) from Britain to upgrade two major Nigerian ports: Tincan and Lagos.

"The UK is also an important source of Foreign Direct Investmentfor Nigeria, and Tinubu will likely seek to secure further investment on this visit in areas likeenergyand tech," Chitayat from MENAS said.

While the UK has a competitive edge and experience in the oil sector, Nigeria desperately needs investment to increase its output, which in turn is expected to bring more traffic to the modernized ports of Lagos.

Deepening bilateral ties

The UK Minister for Trade, Chris Bryant, had already met with the Nigerian Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment, Jumoke Oduwole, two days prior to Tinubu's arrival. "The meeting brought together senior policymakers, technical experts, and private sector representatives to assess progress since the launch of ETIP," the UK Department for Business and Trade said in a statement.

Hoffmann, however, doubts that these meetings will yield any immediate returns: "(A)ny potential investments are unlikely to fix Nigeria's struggling economy," she stated, stressing that trade volumes between the two nations remain low and cannot be beefed up overnight.

Mohammed Idris, the Nigerian government's spokesman, paints a much brighter picture of the trip's significance, stating that Tinubu's trip "marks the next step in deepening co-operation across trade, finance and defence" between the two nations.

Chitayat stresses that despite Nigeria being "only the UK's 36th largest trading partner, representing just 0.4% of total UK trade, trade volumes [between the two nations] are meaningful," especially in view of a 11% growth rate over the last 12 months.

Security framework to fight terrorism together

Nigeria has struggled to shake off decades of jihadist insurgency and a steep rise in overall crime. It now ranks sixth on the Global Terrorism Index. Earlier this week, at least 23 people were killed in an attack in Maiduguri, northeastern Nigeria,  in a series of suicide bombings, which authorities blamed on the Islamist Boko Haram group.

Security partnerships with the UK — but even more so with France and the US — are therefore just as crucial a concern to the Nigerian leader as fixing the economy.

"Back in February, the UK announced that it would be deepening cooperation with Ministry of Defence in Nigeria by providing training and intelligence in support of its policing, counterterrorism activities, and maritime security," Chitayat told DW.

Tinubu's state visit aims to further expand cooperation in such areas. In addition to fighting global terrorism, Britain hopes that tighter security in Nigeria will help limit irregular immigration to the UK, where Nigerians are one of the largest migrant nationalities.

Edited by: Chrispin Mwakideu