President Muhammadu Buhari will depart Abuja on Thursday for a four-day trip to Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.
Buhari Travels To Ethiopia For AU Summit
In a statement on Wednesday, February 2, the presidential spokesperson, Femi Adesina said the president is expected to attend the 35th ordinary session of the assembly of African Union heads of state and government at Addis Ababa.
The statement titled ‘President Buhari to participate in AU meeting in Addis Ababa,” said the Nigerian president will join other African leaders to find solutions to political, economic and social challenges facing the continent.
Adesina said the meeting will be centered on the theme, ‘Building Resilience in Nutrition and Food Security on the African Continent: Strengthen Agriculture, Accelerate the Human Capital, Social and Economic Development’.
Buhari is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with some African leaders on improving trade relations, partnering to tackle security challenges and collaborations with multilateral institutions for sustainable development.
“The president will be accompanied by the minister of foreign affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama; minister of health, Dr Osagie Ehanire; minister of agriculture, Mohammed Abubakar; and minister of humanitarian affairs, disaster management and social development, Sadiya Umar Farouk,” the statement reads.
“The national security adviser, Maj. Gen. Babagana Monguno, and director general of the national intelligence agency (NIA), Amb. Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, will also join the president at the AU meetings.”
The meeting is coming amid military coups in African countries, especially in the West African region. The latest related incident was in Guinea-Bissau on Tuesday.