The Federal Government of Nigeria recently conferred citizenship upon 385 foreign nationals from different continents. The occasion was the 1st Conferment Ceremony of Nigeria Citizenship by Naturalisation and Registration held in Abuja. According to Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, the initiative seeks to attract foreigners with resources, talents and unbounded energy to invest in Nigeria.
One of the core objectives of the present administration, the minister had emphasised, was to put in place a solid socio-economic and political foundation that would enable Nigeria to become one of the 20 great economies of the world. He added that the granting of 385 citizenships during the ceremony was a testament to the success of this initiative.
In his address, Rauf Aregbesola explained that the largest number of foreigners had been naturalised under President Buhari’s administration. Between 2011 and 2013, a total of 266 foreigners became Nigerian citizens. In 2017, 335 people took up Nigerian citizenship and in 2019, 286. However, the minister disclosed that this figure was less than half of the number of foreigners inducted into citizenship by European and American countries annually.
The pathway to Nigerian citizenship presents a huge disincentive for foreigners. One of the major constitutional requirements is continuous residence in the country for 15 years. This is unlike what obtains in the U.S. and most European countries, where the residency requirement is only five years.
The minister added that one of the ways to attract more people of talent and resources to Nigeria is to have easier pathways to citizenship for foreigners than currently obtainable. He also highlighted the need to ensure that foreign husbands of Nigerian women have the same privilege as foreign wives of Nigerian men to automatically become citizens through registration.
The Interior Ministry had gotten the approval of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to execute new pathways to permanent residency for eligible foreign nationals. It was also empowered to grant permanent residence to foreign nationals who had demonstrated exceptional talents, knowledge and skills in rare fields of Science, Technology, Medicine, among others.
While conferring citizenship on the foreigners was the Vice President of Nigeria, Professor Yemi Osinbajo. He urged the newly naturalized citizens to be good ambassadors of Nigeria.
