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Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to represent President Bola Tinubu at the 39th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of African Union (AU) Heads of State and Government and the 30th Ordinary Session of the AU General Assembly.
His arrival was disclosed in a statement on Thursday by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications.
According to Nkwocha, Shettima was received at Bole International Airport by Ethiopia’s Minister of Innovation and Technology, Dr Belete Mola, and the Ethiopian State Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Berhanu Tsegaye.
Also on hand were Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar; Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Dunoma Ahmed; Chargé d’Affaires of the Nigerian Embassy in Ethiopia, Ambassador Nasiru Aminu; Head of Consular Affairs and Ambassador-Designate, Ambassador Geoffrey Chima; and other officials.
Nkwocha said Ambassador Tuggar briefed the vice president on his itinerary at the summit.
He added that beyond the Heads of State meetings, Shettima will “participate in high-level side events and bilateral engagements with political and business leaders aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s diplomatic, economic, and strategic partnerships across the continent.”
Speaking with journalists after briefing the Vice President, Tuggar described the launch of the Regional Partnership for Democracy (RPD) as a strategic move to consolidate and strengthen the democratic culture in Africa.
On the gains from the summit, the minister said Nigeria was already benefiting from its participation, with the confirmation of Nigeria as the host of the African Monetary Institute and the African Central Bank as well as its nomination to the board of the bank.
