By Olawale Lamina
President Bola Tinubu and First Lady Oluremi Tinubu arrived the country on Friday after a two-day state visit to the United Kingdom.
A video footage confirming their arrival was shared on X by the Special Adviser to Tinubu on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare. The video displayed how the presidential aircraft touched down, with senior government officials, including Senate President Godswill Akpabio, present to welcome the couple.
Dare wrote.: “A President arrives home. Excitement as President Tinubu returns to Nigeria after a resoundingly successful state visit to the UK.”
Tinubu and wife departed Abuja and arrived London Stansted Airport on Tuesday. The guests were hosted by King Charles III and Queen Camilla the following day at Windsor Castle, where they received a ceremonial welcome, including an honour guard and carriage procession.
The March 18-19, 2026 visit marked a historic moment, being the first formal state visit by a Nigerian leader to the UK in 37 years. The previous one having occurred in 1989. The duo departed Abuja and arrived at London Stansted Airport on Tuesday.
Their itinerary followed a special reception in which King Charles III and Queen Camilla hosted them the following day at Windsor Castle, where they received a ceremonial welcome, including an honour guard and carriage procession.
The president and his entourage also attended a state banquet hosted by King Charles III and Queen Camilla on Wednesday. At the banquet, Tiubu recounted the support and protection he received in the United Kingdom during Nigeria’s military dictatorship, while reaffirming the enduring ties between the two nations.
In his address, King Charles hailed the UK-Nigeria relationship as a “partnership of equals,” highlighting the deep cultural, commercial, and people-to-people ties between the two nations.
Sequel to the banquet, Tinubu on Thursday met with United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer in a high-level bilateral engagement aimed at strengthening ties between the two countries.
Memoranda of understanding signed between Nigeria and the UK included a £746 million financing agreement involving UK Export Finance, the Nigerian Ports Authority, and the Federal Ministry of Finance.
Similarly, a new treaty was also signed with the United Kingdom to facilitate the return of failed Nigerian asylum seekers, visa overstayers, and convicted felons, as a way of strengthening migration control and bilateral cooperation.
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