Abuja – President Muhammadu Buhari says African leaders must speak
with one voice, independent of foreign influence to achieve economic
integration, developme
nt, peace and security on the continent.
Malam Garba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant to the
President on Media and Publicity made this known in a statement issued in Abuja
on Saturday. Buhari was speaking at a bilateral meeting with President Alpha
Conde of Guinea on Friday night in Istanbul, Turkey. The presidential aide said
that the two presidents, who met on the margins of the 9th D8 Summit in
Istanbul, exchanged views on bilateral relations as well as regional and
international issues of mutual interest. Buhari said that leaders should learn
from history to effectively tackle conflicts, violent extremism, and
proliferation of small arms and light weapons. He assured his Guinean
counterpart, who is also the current Chairman of AU that Nigeria would continue
to strengthen its engagement with all AU member states to address current
security challenges in restive areas such as South Sudan and Libya, and the
political crisis in Togo. In his remarks, Conde praised Nigeria’s leadership on
the continent, particularly Buhari’s great job on anti-corruption and his
strong voice on African issues at the international stage. The Guinean leader
stressed the need for Guinea and Nigeria to accelerate economic cooperation,
particularly in the natural resources sector, where Guinea boasts of 25 per
cent or more of the world’s known bauxite reserves.(NAN) SYC/GY
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