In furtherance of ongoing efforts to rout Boko Haram insurgency, which has ravaged parts of the country, President Muhammadu Buhari has mobilised the support of all African countries to help Nigeria win the war.
Speaking when he chaired the Peace and Security Council meeting at
the 25th African Union (AU) Summit holding in Johannesburg, South
Africa, yesterday, the president pointed out that Boko Haram had become a
regional problem, affecting particularly, Nigeria’s neighbours in the
Northern part of the country.
The summit is President Buhari’s first, since his inauguration as democratically elected president last month.
The president will also hold bilateral talks with other African leaders on the sidelines of the summit to consolidate his ongoing drive to secure Nigeria and neighbouring countries from Boko Haram, a statement by the presidency indicated.
Boko Haram has extended its reach to Nigeria’s neighbouring countries, which makes it not limited to Nigeria.
I am pleased to note that Cameroon, Chad and Niger are fighting side by side with Nigeria under the umbrella of the Multi-National Joint Task Force to defeat Boko Haram,” he told the UN Deputy Secretary-general, Jan Eliasson, Chairperson of African Union (AU) Commission, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and heads of other African countries at the summit.
Sunday reports that talks at the meeting largely focused on security challenges facing some African countries, as participants sought better ways of tackling insurgency in some West African countries.
The crises in South Sudan and Burundi also formed part of discussions, with emphasis on the need for leaders of African countries to place the nation’s interest above their personal interest.
Nigeria’s security is at the core of the agenda of President Buhari, whose tenure began on May 29. It would be recalled that in his inaugural address, the president reiterated his resolve to end insurgency in the country.
The country’s security challenges was also one of the items on the wish list presented by the president to the meeting of G7 countries, held in Germany, a few days back. Recall also that before the trip to Germany, the president had also visited the Presidents of Chad and Niger Republic to discuss ways of ending insurgency in the country.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwean president, Robert Mugabe, said that it is time Africa speeds up its industrialisation efforts.
Speaking at the summit, Mugabe urged Africans to take their fate into their own hands by making finished products from minerals mined on the continent before exporting them across the globe.
He formed part of a New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) panel, alongside President Jacob Zuma and President Macky Sall of Senegal. President Buhari was supposed to be part of the panel but did not make it to the summit on time.
Surely the African people cannot continue to be hewers of wood and drawers of water, while others delight in their resources, in our resources. With unwavering courage and collective determination, Africa can also industrialise in the same manner other regions have achieved industrialisation within the shortest period possible,” Mugabe said.
He also said NEPAD and other African institutions must prioritise iindustrialisation. Earlier in his welcome address, President Jacob Zuma of South Africa, who is hosting his counterparts from the continent until tomorrow, June 15, said they should celebrate the fact that a number of the world’s fastest growing economies are in Africa.
He acknowledged however that unemployment among the youth was one of Africa’s biggest threats and identified climate change as stifling development.
Zuma said there was “a huge difference to what Africa was decades ago. We have a commitment to challenge them on our terms,” even as he urged African leaders to work together, saying no African country could achieve prosperity on its own.
“We have one future and a shared destiny.”
Zuma further averred that the deaths of migrants attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe amount to an indictment of leadership in Africa.
“In recent times, we have all witnessed painful and shameful images of our African brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers and children dying during unsafe passage across the Mediterranean Sea,” he said.
“This is an indictment to all of us and calls on us to realise that although we have done so much to improve the living standards of our people, there is a need to double our efforts,” the South African president added.
Angelina Jolie tackles women’s rights at AU summit
Meanwhile, US Actress, Angelina Jolie, has advocated equal rights and a global fight against violence against women.
Jolie, who is also attending the conference, which theme focuses on women empowerment, was invited by AU Commission head, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.
She praised the AU for taking the fight for women’s rights forward, saying, “you have put women’s rights at the heart of this summit and the AU’s agenda and that is unbelievably important.”
The actress however pointed out that the world has a long way to go.
The summit is President Buhari’s first, since his inauguration as democratically elected president last month.
The president will also hold bilateral talks with other African leaders on the sidelines of the summit to consolidate his ongoing drive to secure Nigeria and neighbouring countries from Boko Haram, a statement by the presidency indicated.
Boko Haram has extended its reach to Nigeria’s neighbouring countries, which makes it not limited to Nigeria.
I am pleased to note that Cameroon, Chad and Niger are fighting side by side with Nigeria under the umbrella of the Multi-National Joint Task Force to defeat Boko Haram,” he told the UN Deputy Secretary-general, Jan Eliasson, Chairperson of African Union (AU) Commission, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and heads of other African countries at the summit.
Sunday reports that talks at the meeting largely focused on security challenges facing some African countries, as participants sought better ways of tackling insurgency in some West African countries.
The crises in South Sudan and Burundi also formed part of discussions, with emphasis on the need for leaders of African countries to place the nation’s interest above their personal interest.
Nigeria’s security is at the core of the agenda of President Buhari, whose tenure began on May 29. It would be recalled that in his inaugural address, the president reiterated his resolve to end insurgency in the country.
The country’s security challenges was also one of the items on the wish list presented by the president to the meeting of G7 countries, held in Germany, a few days back. Recall also that before the trip to Germany, the president had also visited the Presidents of Chad and Niger Republic to discuss ways of ending insurgency in the country.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwean president, Robert Mugabe, said that it is time Africa speeds up its industrialisation efforts.
Speaking at the summit, Mugabe urged Africans to take their fate into their own hands by making finished products from minerals mined on the continent before exporting them across the globe.
He formed part of a New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) panel, alongside President Jacob Zuma and President Macky Sall of Senegal. President Buhari was supposed to be part of the panel but did not make it to the summit on time.
Surely the African people cannot continue to be hewers of wood and drawers of water, while others delight in their resources, in our resources. With unwavering courage and collective determination, Africa can also industrialise in the same manner other regions have achieved industrialisation within the shortest period possible,” Mugabe said.
He also said NEPAD and other African institutions must prioritise iindustrialisation. Earlier in his welcome address, President Jacob Zuma of South Africa, who is hosting his counterparts from the continent until tomorrow, June 15, said they should celebrate the fact that a number of the world’s fastest growing economies are in Africa.
He acknowledged however that unemployment among the youth was one of Africa’s biggest threats and identified climate change as stifling development.
Zuma said there was “a huge difference to what Africa was decades ago. We have a commitment to challenge them on our terms,” even as he urged African leaders to work together, saying no African country could achieve prosperity on its own.
“We have one future and a shared destiny.”
Zuma further averred that the deaths of migrants attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe amount to an indictment of leadership in Africa.
“In recent times, we have all witnessed painful and shameful images of our African brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers and children dying during unsafe passage across the Mediterranean Sea,” he said.
“This is an indictment to all of us and calls on us to realise that although we have done so much to improve the living standards of our people, there is a need to double our efforts,” the South African president added.
Angelina Jolie tackles women’s rights at AU summit
Meanwhile, US Actress, Angelina Jolie, has advocated equal rights and a global fight against violence against women.
Jolie, who is also attending the conference, which theme focuses on women empowerment, was invited by AU Commission head, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.
She praised the AU for taking the fight for women’s rights forward, saying, “you have put women’s rights at the heart of this summit and the AU’s agenda and that is unbelievably important.”
The actress however pointed out that the world has a long way to go.
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