President Muhammadu Buhari has pledged Nigeria’s continued support to international organisations working in the Northeast region of the country, who are providing humanitarian assistance to citizens impacted by long years of insurgency.
Malam Garba Shehu, the President’s spokesman, in a statement, said Buhari made the pledge when he met with the Director-General of International Organisation for Migration (IOM), Antonio Vitorino, on Sunday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The meeting was held on the margins of the 36th AU Summit.
While assuring IOM that the Federal Government would continue to partner with them to make their work more effective and efficient, the president lauded the organisation’s humanitarian activities in the Northeast and Northwest regions of the country.
He noted that their staff had often braced the difficult terrain to provide assistance to those in need.
He urged the international community not to neglect those living on the fringes of Lake Chad, who had lost their means of livelihood because of the impact of climate change and the monumental shrinking of Lake Chad from its original state.
While giving a brief on its projects in the country, the IOM chief told the president that his organisation was partnering with the Borno Government on strengthening its humanitarian response capacity, including the reintegration, rehabilitation and resettlement programme of IDPs.
He thanked the federal government of Nigeria for the unflinching support to IOM operations in the country.
Similarly, Buhari also met with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of Somalia, during which they exchanged views on how to counter the propaganda and threats of terrorists’ organisations such as Boko Haram and Al-Shabab.
Mohamud underscored Nigeria’s support to Somalia, dating back to the deployment of Nigerian peacekeepers to ensure stability in the restive country.
He said Somalians would not forget the sacrifices of the Nigerian peacekeepers who died in the line of duty and those who were injured while risking their lives to bring peace to his country.
Earlier on Sunday, Buhari at the invitation of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed of Ethiopia, participated at a High-level event on ‘‘Reinvigorating Pan-Africanism for a Changing World’’.
The event was held at the African Leadership Excellence Academy (AFLEX), in the outskirts of Addis Ababa.
The forum featured presentation of papers, lectures and panel discussion on Pan-Africanism, recalibration of Pan-Africanism in the 21st century, as well as lessons learned from the AU’s African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM).
At the end of the forum, Buhari and other participating Heads of State planted trees inside AFLEX Academy to showcase the success and progress of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy project.
NAN
