Nigeria on Monday joined the International Energy Agency's growing network of partner countries, opening a new phase of cooperation between the energy agency and one of Africa's largest oil and gas producers.
The move gives the IEA deeper access to Africa's most populous nation at a time when the global energy landscape is shifting toward emerging and developing economies.
"Nigeria joining the IEA Family is a landmark moment - for Nigeria, for Africa and for the IEA," said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol.
Nigeria is a major producer and exporter of crude oil and natural gas, playing an important role in international fuel markets. Its energy system also includes a growing off-grid renewable sector, while millions of people continue to face challenges in gaining access to reliable electricity and clean cooking.
The new partnership is intended to address those challenges while helping Nigeria strengthen its position in global energy markets.
The two sides also signed the first IEA-Nigeria Joint Work Program, outlining areas of cooperation for the coming years.
The program includes energy security, investment, data and statistics, energy efficiency and clean cooking. It will also provide policy advice, analytical work, training, and greater exchange between Nigerian institutions and IEA experts.
For Nigeria, the partnership comes as the country seeks to attract investment into its energy sector while meeting rapidly rising domestic demand.
The IEA said that the country also faces a combination of challenges common to many emerging economies, including power and fuel supplies, improving reliability, mobilizing capital and extending modern energy services to a rapidly growing population.
The agency said its global engagement has expanded over the past decade as the center of gravity of energy demand has shifted toward emerging and developing economies.
With Nigeria's inclusion, the IEA Family now represents more than 80% of global energy demand, compared with about 40% in 2015 when the agency's membership accounted for that share.
Nigeria also strengthens the IEA's engagement with sub-Saharan Africa. It joins South Africa, Kenya and Senegal as Association countries in the region, giving African governments a larger role in the agency's international energy discussions.
The partnership offers the IEA an opportunity to bring one of Africa's largest and most strategically important energy markets further into its international policy and analytical network.
The agency said cooperation with Nigeria would help it engage more deeply with energy systems across Africa while supporting the country's priorities on energy security, investment, energy access and the development of its broader energy potential.