Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, on Wednesday received the Russian Chapter of the BRICS Women’s Business Alliance at the State House in Abuja, assuring the delegation of her office’s continued advocacy for women’s empowerment and entrepreneurship.
This was made known by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, on her official X handle The delegation was led by the Chairperson of the Alliance, Anna Nesterova, and included senior executives and academics who expressed readiness to collaborate with Nigeria across sectors such as pharmaceuticals, film co-production, labour mobility, financial literacy, and AI-driven healthcare.
Welcoming the team, Sen. Tinubu highlighted her humanitarian work through the Renewed Hope Initiative while clarifying that ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) remain the primary drivers of government policy and economic programmes.
“My office will continue to provide advocacy and encouragement, but the ministries have the statutory responsibilities and budgets to support your mission. I do a lot of programmes through my foundation, but when it comes to women’s empowerment and entrepreneurship, the ministries are the right partners. My role is to complement, advise, and facilitate,” she explained.
In her remarks, Nesterova praised the First Lady as “an incredible woman who not only changes lives for the better but also paves the way for a prosperous future for the Nigerian people.”
She announced plans by the Alliance to establish a regional office in Nigeria to serve as a gateway for women entrepreneurs into international markets.
The Alliance also donated 1,000 labour and delivery kits to support maternal health in Nigeria.
Nesterova noted that their Common Digital Platform currently connects more than 3,000 businesswomen from 60 countries, adding that last year alone, 50 Nigerian women applied for the BRICS Women’s Startups Contest.
The Russian delegation featured Liudmila Shcherbakova of VET PHARM Group, Natalia Vershinina of United Migration Center, Prof. Liudmila Popova of Orel State University, and Anna Meshcheryakova of Third Opinion AI.
A technical session held at the State House Banquet Hall focused on strengthening bilateral ties and exploring investment opportunities between Nigeria and Russia.
Officials said the engagement marks a new chapter in Nigeria–Russia relations with a deliberate agenda to deliver actionable frameworks for cooperation and joint ventures, in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda on foreign policy, partnerships, and economic diversification.
