Nigeria’s Bilateral Relations with Saudi Arabia: Oil Diplomacy and the OIC Connection

This study examines the bilateral relationship between Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, focusing on two central pillars: petroleum cooperation within the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Nigeria's membership of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Nigeria and Saudi Arabia share overlapping interests in global oil markets, Islamic solidarity diplomacy, and counterterrorism cooperation, yet the relationship also carries domestic political sensitivities rooted in Nigeria's multi-religious demography. Drawing on interest-based realism and the concept of religious diplomacy, this research traces the key episodes and institutional frameworks of Nigeria-Saudi bilateral engagement from 2019 to 2024. The study employs a qualitative methodology, relying on document analysis of joint communiques, OPEC production data, OIC summit records, and academic literature. Interviews with officials at the Nigerian Ministry of Petroleum Resources and senior scholars at Usman Dan Fodio University, Sokoto, provide supplementary primary data. The research pays specific attention to how Nigeria balances its OIC commitments with its self-presentation as a secular multi-faith state. Findings are expected to show that the bilateral relationship is substantive but managed carefully to avoid domestic religious polarisation. The study contributes to understanding of religious diplomacy in pluralistic African states. Keywords: Nigeria-Saudi Arabia, oil diplomacy, OIC, religious diplomacy, OPEC.