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He also disclosed that his country gives while about $115 million yearly in form of humanitarian and development assistance to several sectors in Nigeria.
Simard,who disclosed this while playing host to the Speaker of the House of Representatives,Femi Gbajabiamila,said in order to underscore the importance of the relationships between the two countries, the Canadian Governor-General visited Nigeria in 2018.
He also expressed his country’s readiness for more robust engagement with Nigeria, while he inquired about how Nigeria is dealing with issues of women empowerment and inclusion as well as human rights situation and what steps the House was taking towards the issues.
He congratulated Nigeria on the adoption of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act and its domestication by several states.
In his remarks,The House of Representatives’ Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, advocated the need for stronger diplomatic relationships between Nigeria and Canada.
Gbajabiamila, who expressed appreciation for the existing relationships between the two countries which led to a significant rise in trade, education, and technology over the years, however, emphasized the need for Canada to explore areas of security, cybersecurity, biosafety, energy as well as parliamentary diplomacy to the benefit of both countries.
He said:”This is important because Nigeria and Canada go back a long way in terms of symbiotic and beneficial relationships.It is important that we sustain and continue these engagements to the benefit of our countries. As we know, the world is a global village now, and everybody feeds off everybody and we are all interdependent one way or the other,” he added.
He said the National Assembly prioritizes certain issues, not only for the development of the country but also in conformity with global demands.
He added that the issue of security, gender parity, violence against persons, rape, in addition to the economy are well articulated in the 9th House Legislative Agenda to help drive the attainment of the set goals of the Green Chamber.
He explained that the House has taken bold steps to address the gender issue through legislative means, including the ongoing constitutional review exercise.
“Gender parity is an area that this 9th National Assembly, I think more than any past Assembly, focuses seriously on. We are not just talking, we are walking the talk”.
He noted that Nigeria is facing serious security challenges like other countries, saying the assistance of Canada towards addressing it would be of benefit to both countries.
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