Nigeria, Pakistan joint commission to be revived ―Buhari

PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari said the Nigeria-Pakistan Joint Commission will be revamped as a veritable platform to strengthen economic and trade relations between both countries.

The President, who expressed satisfaction at the level of defence and military cooperation between both countries, however, agreed with the Prime Minister that there was still room to do more.

He regretted that same could not be said on the economic and trade fronts, which he said had fallen far short of what can be achieved by both countries.

A statement issued by Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Garba Shehu, quoted him as saying: ”Nigeria-Pakistan cooperation is very historical. Military training has been very consistent and I am impressed by the efficiency of officers trained in Pakistan.

”But the performance of our countries in relation to trade and industrial cooperation had been very disappointing.”

While noting that Nigeria had failed to use past earnings to create a commensurate level of socio-economic development, the President assured that his administration had identified the problems, and was ardently working to promote national development through international trade, industrial growth and the improvement of infrastructure.

He then urged Pakistan to take full advantage of the new climate of investment promoted by his administration.

On the fight against terrorism, President Buhari told the Pakistani Prime Minister that Boko Haram terrorist group remains degraded.

”We have moved them out from their strongholds in the North East, we have denied them space and even their attacks on soft targets are becoming less often.

”Even the opposition [party] recognises that there is a considerable improvement of security in the North East,” he said.

In his remarks, Abbasi said both countries had similar prospects and challenges, including large population, key regional players in economy and security; the fight against terrorism, improving governance and the domestic economy.

He said Pakistan will continue to share experiences with Nigeria in the fight against terrorism towards developing effective strategies and results.

In line with this promise, the Pakistani Prime Minister presented a manual on strategy and tactics of dealing with terrorism to the President, which he said, had been put together by his country’s army.

On the Joint Commission, which next meeting falls on Pakistan to convene, the Prime Minister said his country is now ready, adding that he would personally receive the Nigerian delegation any time.

He also requested President Buhari to undertake a state visit to Pakistan at the earliest possible time.

In a separate development, President Buhari said that African leaders must speak ‘with one voice’, independent of foreign influence, to achieve economic integration, development, peace, and security on the continent.

Speaking at a bilateral meeting with President Alpha Conde of Guinea on Friday night in Istanbul, Turkey, President Buhari said leaders should learn from history to effectively tackle conflicts, violent extremism, and proliferation of small arms and light weapons.

The two Presidents, who met on the margins of the ninth D8 Summit in Istanbul, exchanged views on bilateral relations as well as regional and international issues of mutual interest.

President Buhari 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 President 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 percent or more of the world’s known bauxite reserves.

(TRIBUNE)