Nigeria and Brazil have taken steps to establish direct flight connections between their major cities, in a move expected to unlock new opportunities for trade, tourism, and bilateral cooperation.

The initiative was announced by the Brazilian Vice President, Geraldo Alckmin, during the Nigeria-Brazil Business Forum held in Abuja, yesterday, as part of the ongoing Nigeria-Brazil Strategic Dialogue Mechanism (SDM).

According to Alckmin, the proposed air route will serve as a strategic bridge between South America and Africa, easing business travel and deepening economic engagement between the two countries.

He underscored the importance of connectivity as a driver of South-South cooperation, noting that the current absence of a direct route had limited the scale of engagement between the two regional powers.

Nigeria’s Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima, welcomed the development, describing it as a vital step in the President Tinubu administration’s quest to integrate Nigeria more closely into global markets.

He added that under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, Nigeria was expanding its aviation infrastructure, reforming regulatory frameworks, and positioning itself as a logistics hub for West Africa.

In his remarks, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, said the proposed flight route would help to reverse the decline in trade volume between both countries, which had dropped from $9 billion a decade ago to just $2 billion.

“Aviation is a key enabler for commerce. We see this route as critical to building a viable Nigeria-Brazil trade corridor that covers agribusiness, pharmaceuticals, creative industries, and more,” she said.

Experts in the aviation sector have hailed the move as a long-overdue step toward strengthening Africa-Latin America air links, which remain underdeveloped despite growing economic and cultural connections.

MEANWHILE, the wife of Nigeria’s Vice President, Hajiya Nana Shettima, and the wife of the Vice President of Brazil, Mrs Maria Lucia Alckmin, yesterday embarked on a cultural tour of prominent artistic landmarks in Abuja.

The tour was a symbolic gesture of cultural diplomacy and deepening people-to-people ties by the ladies.

The tour included visits to the renowned Nike Art Gallery and the 5 Cowries Initiative, two institutions at the heart of Nigeria’s vibrant creative landscape.

The visit was part of a broader agenda accompanying the Brazilian Vice President’s official trip to Nigeria for the second session of the Nigeria-Brazil Strategic Dialogue Mechanism (SDM).