The much-anticipated Friends of Ireland in Nigeria (FoIN) ‘St Patrick’s Day Business Lunch’ was hosted by The Wheatbaker in Lagos on Friday, 20 March and was fully booked out ahead of time.

Our Chair Mrs Alice Dina recognised the invaluable contribution of General Manager Paul Kavanagh and his team led by Salomé Danjuma, in welcoming guests and ensuring the highest standard of hospitality. She also thanked Nate Furey and Femi Leye for their superb Irish-Nigerian musical fusion performance.

The visiting Irish Government Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, Jack Chambers TD, was the Guest of Honour and was joined by Ambassador Ryan and members of the Delegation. In his remarks, the Minister recognised the important role of FoIN in promoting closer business, cultural and people to people links between Ireland and Nigeria. Referring to the Official Opening of the new Embassy of Ireland in Abuja on the previous day, the Minister said that it was a tangible sign of the commitment of the Irish Government to deepening and broadening the connections with Nigeria.

Dr Chinyere Almona, who had led the first Lagos Chamber of Commerce Trade Mission to Ireland in June 2025, also addressed the gathering, eloquently highlighting the business opportunities in Lagos and the role of the FoIN in helping Team Ireland to build stronger community, cultural and commercial links between Ireland and Nigeria.

Enterprise Ireland and Bord Bia were represented at the event by Ms. Eimear Costigan and Ms. Ese Okopomo respectively and were joined by a number of their client company representatives. We are grateful also to the National College of Ireland, Independent College, Órnua, VACC and our own Seni Dina, John Hines and Connie Guilfoyle for their support for the event.

Our annual St Patrick’s Day lunch is now a fixture in the calendar so make sure to reserve your tickets for March 2027 well ahead of time to ensure you and your clients get to enjoy St Patrick’s Day Lagos-style.