Nigerian state visit signals shift in France’s Africa strategy [Video]

President Bola Tinubu will begin a two-day trip to France on Thursday, the first state visit by a Nigerian leader in more than two decades, as Paris seeks to boost ties with anglophone Africa.

Military coups and changing attitudes have lessened France’s influence on the African continent, where several nations have turned their backs on their former colonial ruler and grown increasingly frosty towards the European Union.

That makes Tinubu’s visit a positive sign for French President Emmanuel Macron, who has sought a “renewal” between Paris and the African continent since his 2017 election.

The trip is “an opportunity to deepen the already dynamic relationship between France and Nigeria”, Macron’s office said ahead of Tinubu’s visit, the first by a Nigerian head of state since 2000.

The west …