By Nkechi Eze
Nigeria and Poland have begun moves to strengthen bilateral cooperation in immigration management, border control, internal security, correctional services, and emergency response systems, in a strategic engagement aimed at enhancing institutional capacity and service delivery.
The Honourable Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this while receiving the Polish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Michal Cygan, and the Deputy Head of Mission, Mr Maciej Klosak, during a courtesy visit to the Ministry.
According to a statement issued by the Ministry’s Head of Press and Public Relations, Mary Ali, the Minister expressed appreciation for the visit and underscored the importance of learning from Poland’s reform experience to strengthen Nigeria’s internal security and administrative systems.
“It shows that perhaps you have walked the path that we are walking now, so we can mirror your processes and avoid your pitfalls,” Tunji-Ojo said. “We are grateful for your visit and for the openness to collaborate.”
He emphasised the need for practical engagement between both countries through study visits, technical exchanges, and structured institutional collaboration to address key operational areas.
The Minister identified priority areas to include immigration and border control systems, internal security frameworks such as civil defence structures, correctional services administration, and emergency response mechanisms, including firefighting solutions.
He noted that Nigeria stands to benefit significantly from Poland’s experience through knowledge transfer, technical cooperation, and institutional strengthening.
“We need to arrange this as soon as possible,” he said, stressing the Ministry’s readiness to work with the Polish Embassy to identify priority areas, assess potential risks, and develop sustainable cooperation frameworks.
Tunji-Ojo added that such collaboration would help Nigeria modernise its systems and improve efficiency across agencies under the Ministry, including the Nigeria Immigration Service and the Nigerian Correctional Service.
In his remarks, the Polish Ambassador, Mr Michal Cygan, said Poland was willing to share its reform experiences and institutional innovations, noting that the lessons were recent and relevant.
“This is not a distant historical experience for us,” Cygan said. “It is the lived experience of our generation. We understand the value of hard work, the demands of development, economic reform, institutional growth and the challenges that accompany rapid growth.”
He said Poland’s willingness to partner Nigeria was rooted in mutual respect and a shared desire to strengthen governance and internal security institutions.
Both parties agreed that enhanced cooperation would improve internal security architecture, strengthen correctional and immigration systems, and promote more effective service delivery.
The meeting ended with a mutual commitment to advance bilateral engagement through structured collaboration, technical partnerships, and sustained diplomatic engagement.
