Nigeria and South Africa are to deploy "cultural diplomacy" to tackle the xenophobic attacks on Nigerians and other Africans in South Africa.
Nigeria's minister of information and culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed said Nigeria is keen to work with South Africa to put an end to the attacks by deploying the "soft power of cultural diplomacy", which he said is widely regarded as an effective tool in this regard.
The minister made this known in Abuja on Friday when the South African High Commissioner to Nigeria, Lulu Aaron-Mnguni paid him a courtesy visit in his office.
Mohammed said relevant parastatals, including the National Council for Arts and Culture, the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation and the Nigerian Film Corporation, would soon embark on a series of activities in South Africa to further strengthen the understanding between Nigerians and South Africans.
These activities, he said, would include joint musical concerts, co-production in the area of films, visits by popular Nollywood actors and actresses to South Africa as part of a Nigerian delegation going on a confidence-building trip.
Other activities will include exhibitions featuring Nigerian cuisine to be entitled: "A Taste of Nigeria" as well as a town hall meeting for Nigerians living in South Africa, with a view to encouraging dialogue on the way forward, especially in their relationship with
their hosts. "These activities and many more, which we are working on, will kick off in the weeks ahead and will not be a one-off event.
"While the diplomats do their work to continue to strengthen bilateral relations between our two countries, we at the Ministry of Information and Culture will deploy and ensure the sustenance of cultural diplomacy to bring our peoples together,” he said.
The minister stressed the need to build people-to-people relations, with a view to strengthening the understanding between the people and stemming the tide of xenophobia.
"Therefore, what we are kick-starting today with this visit will have ramifications far beyond the shores of Nigeria and South Africa. For long, Nigerians have treated South Africans as their brothers and sisters.
"Over 120 South African companies, perhaps more than those of any other African country, are doing business in Nigeria, thousands of Nigerians regularly travel to South Africa for business and leisure and - historically - Nigeria played a front-line role in helping to end apartheid in South Africa.
"We must spare no effort in strengthening this brotherly spirit between our two countries.
"We have no doubt that the deployment of the soft power of 'cultural diplomacy' will be a major tool in this effort, and we will leave no stone unturned in this regard,” Mohammed said.
He stated that if the relations between Nigeria and South Africa were more cordial, it would have a reverberating and positive effect on the whole of Africa.
In his remarks, the South African high commissioner to Nigeria hailed Nigeria for its invaluable contribution to the liberation of South Africa from apartheid.
He said South Africa is now committed to reciprocating the gesture by developing stronger ties with Nigeria.
"After sharing trenches, we are now a free people. Thanks to your relentless fight side-by-side with us.
"When we got our freedom, we had to change and develop ways of building a new South Africa and a new Nigeria,” Mnguni said.
He said South Africa was also looking at how best to use the soft power of culture to educate the citizens of the two countries about their traditions.
Xenophobic attacks on Nigerians and other Africans in South Africa reared their ugly head again earlier this year, with rights groups and individuals calling on the Nigerian government to take sterner measures instead of employing the diplomatic option.
For instance, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) strongly condemned the xenophobic attacks and called on Nigeria’s Acting President Prof Yemi Osinbajo to summon the South African high commissioner to protest against the killings.
HURIWA also called on the UN Security Council to send peace-keeping missions to townships in South Africa to prevent xenophobic attacks on Nigerians and Africans by South Africans, because the South African police in the past decade-and-a-half had failed to stop the killings and prosecute and punish the perpetrators.
The group had called on the Nigerian government to adopt a number of measures, including downgrading the diplomatic relationship with South Africa and severing of trade exchanges to "demonstrate the Nigerian government’s sensitivity to the wellbeing of Nigerians living in South Africa, who were in the front-line of xenophobic attacks over the past 17 years".
However, the Nigerian government through its foreign affairs minister Geoffrey Onyeama, said Nigeria had taken some measures to put a stop to the attacks on Nigerians in South Africa and expressed worry on the alleged involvement of the South African police in the attacks.
"We are doing a lot; we are engaging with the South African government, we have summoned the South African High Commissioner, Mr Lulu Aaron-Mnguni.
"We have communicated our deep concern to the South African government, if that is the case in these allegations (of police involvement), steps should be taken to ensure the situation does not happen.
"Nigeria is also concerned about some inflammatory statements by South African politicians, which can incite violence.
"This was brought to the attention of the South African authorities and this has to stop.
"Security should be provided for Nigerians and there has to be compensation for the victims," Onyeama said.