Abuja - German President Horst Koehler signed two bilateral economic policy accords with Nigeria on Monday, after calling for a permanent seat for Africa on the United Nations Security Council.

Koehler, continuing his six-day visit to Nigeria, said that in efforts to reform the UN Security Council, there must be a "fair representation of Africa," although he did not specify which country should be considered to hold the seat.

The German president also said that a fair representation for all the world's regions should be assured as well in other international organizations such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF). Koehler himself had previously headed the IMF.

Koehler said this issue should be taken up in the debate concerning the causes of the international financial crisis.

In a push for expansion of bilateral economic relations, the German president signed two policy agreements with Nigeria.

One of the agreements concerned the intension of Germany air carrier Lufthansa to make more frequent flights to Nigeria as well as flights to other African countries from the Nigerian capital Abuja.

The other economic agreement concerned greater engagement by German energy company E. ON in Nigeria, including the introduction of technology to supply Nigeria's unused gas reserves for domestic use as well as for export.

Koehler stated that the Lufthansa interest in the Africa country demonstrated that Nigeria was to be taken seriously as a developing nation.

Germany's interest in Nigeria went beyond concerns over energy, Koehler added, saying that Nigeria should move on from simply delivering oil and gas toward establishing its own manufacturing industry.

After the meeting with Koehler, Nigerian President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, while showing a great interest in Germany technology, said his country was also working with energy companies from other countries including those from the United States and Russia.

The German president arrived in Nigeria on Friday and over the weekend participated in the Africa Forum, an initiative of his that brings together African and European business leaders. The state visit part of his trip to Nigeria began on Monday. (dpa)