Buhari Back In Abuja After 6-Day Bilateral Talks In China

'Dotun Akintomide
Writer

Ad

The Gift of Hindsight: What I Would Tell My Younger Self, By Johnson Babalola

By Johnson Babalola @jbdlaw Hindsight, they say, is life’s most generous teacher—but it sends its lessons late. It is only after the storms that the patterns become clear; only after the wrong turns that the map begins to make sense. As I celebrate another birthday today and have grown older, I often find myself reflecting…

Gasoline Prices Drop Toward Pandemic-Era Lows

The national average price of gasoline dropped below $3 a gallon over the weekend. GasBuddy has predicted that prices will go even lower in the coming weeks, with good prospects of motorists enjoying sub-$3 prices for extended periods. This drop is overwhelmingly being driven by the significant increase in oil production from OPEC throughout 2025.…

Alleged Christian Genocide Claim is Damaging Nigeria’s Image– Tuggar Laments

By Abiola Olawale Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, has voiced concern over what he described as the damaging impact of the "Christian genocide" narrative on Nigeria's international image. This is as the Minister claimed that the country's complex security challenges are being falsely simplified as religious persecution. Speaking at the Reuters NEXT Gulf Summit…

Ad

President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday night, returned to Abuja after attending the Forum on China and Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing.

His return was amidst fears of earth tremors in Abuja and surrounding areas over the last 48 hours.

During the six-day visit to China, Buhari held bilateral talks and witnessed the signing of some agreements between Nigeria and China in the areas of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and the economy.

He also participated in the High-Level Dialogue between Chinese and African leaders and business representatives.

At the FOCAC meeting, Buhari expressed the appreciation of ECOWAS member states for China’s increasing investment in the sub-region with the aim of building a prosperous and shared future.

He noted that China was the largest investor in the sub-region in both private and public sectors, covering areas, such as infrastructure development in energy, agriculture, mining and healthcare.

According to him, China also provides significant assistance in emergency humanitarian aid and response to climate change for Africa.

Buhari at the FOCAC Round Table on Tuesday, attended by African leaders and Chinese President Xi Jinping, said Nigeria’s partnership with China through FOCAC had resulted in the execution of vital infrastructure projects worth over five billion dollars.

Malam Garba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, who was part of the president’s entourage to China, reported that Buhari won the crucial support of Jinping, for Nigeria’s aspiration to build the 3050 Megawatts Mambilla hydro-power project.

He revealed that Nigeria and China also signed the agreement of 328 million dollars for the Information and Communication Technology Infrastructure Backbone Phase II (NICTIB II) project.

The concessional loan agreement between Galaxy Backbone Limited and Huawei Technologies Limited (HUAWEI) was signed by Nigeria’s Minister of Finance Kemi Adesoun and Wang Xiaotoa, Director-General, International Development Agency of China.

The presidential aide disclosed that Nigeria and China also signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the One Belt One Road Initiative (OBOR).

In Beijing, Buhari also received assurances from the Joint Venture Partners handling the 3050 Megawatts Mambilla Hydro-power Plant of which arrangements had reached advance stage for the commencement of work early in 2019.

Buhari received the assurance when he was briefed on time lines for the commencement of work at a meeting with Prof. Lyu Ze Xiang, the President of CGCC, the company handling the project.

The president, at separate meetings with prospective Chinese investors on the sidelines of FOCAC, assured existing and prospective Chinese investors of high-level support for their investment plans in Nigeria.

The president, at an interactive session with the Nigerian community in China on Saturday, had given assurance that as “a beneficiary of free and fair elections, I’m not afraid of a credible process in 2019.’’

To this effect, the president reaffirmed his commitment to making sure that the 2019 polls would be free, fair and credible.

Buhari pledged that Nigerians eligible to vote in the general elections would be allowed to freely elect candidates of their choices.

Ad

X whatsapp