Food, culture and friendship took centre stage as Nigeria and China held the 2026 Nigeria-China Food Festival at the China Cultural Centre in Abuja on Thursday.
Jointly organised by the China Cultural Centre and the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR), the event featured the display and tasting of Chinese and Nigerian cuisines, cultural performances and other activities celebrating the culinary traditions of both countries.
In his remarks, Mr. Zhou Hongyou, Chargé d’Affaires ad interim of the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria, described food as an important bridge for cultural understanding, saying the cuisines of the two countries provided an opportunity for Nigerians and Chinese to learn more about each other.
“Today, we bring Chinese and Nigerian cuisines together. This is not just a feast for our taste buds, it is also a conversation and a meeting of our cultures,” Zhou said.
He said the festival offered guests the opportunity to taste 14 dishes from China’s seven regions, while Chinese participants sampled 12 Nigerian dishes representing the country’s six zones.
Zhou explained that China’s diverse geography, climate and lifestyles had produced distinctive regional food cultures, making cuisine an important window into the country’s geography, traditions and people.
Zhou said the festival was particularly significant as Nigeria and China mark 55 years of diplomatic relations, adding that bilateral economic ties had also continued to grow.
He disclosed that China imported about $2.3 billion in Nigerian goods in the first half of 2026, an 80 per cent increase from the same period last year, while total bilateral trade reached $18 billion.
The Chinese envoy said both countries would continue to promote exchanges in education, culture, arts, sports and youth affairs as part of efforts to deepen people-to-people relations.
Also speaking, NIHOTOUR Director-General and Chief Executive Officer, Aare Abisoye Fagade said the festival demonstrated the potential of food to promote tourism, create jobs and generate economic opportunities.
He said Nigeria’s rich culinary heritage, including jollof rice, pounded yam, indigenous soups, spices, grains and seafood, could serve as the foundation for a globally recognised food-tourism industry if properly packaged, promoted and commercialised while preserving its authenticity.
The Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa, who was represented by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Abdulkarim Ozi Ibrahim, said food plays an important role in preserving heritage, creating livelihoods and bringing people together.
She urged Nigeria and China to use the 55th anniversary of their diplomatic relations to explore new areas of cooperation in gastronomy, tourism, hospitality, culinary education and creative entrepreneurship.
The festival brought together government officials, Chinese and Nigerian representatives, culinary professionals, creatives and members of the diplomatic community.
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