Buhari to speak at second inauguration of Ethiopian prime minister

President Muhammadu Buhari will on Monday attend the inauguration ceremony of Abiy Ahmed, Ethiopian prime minister.

Ahmed, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, secured a second term in office in July.

President Buhari will deliver a goodwill message at the inauguration ceremony, says the presidency.

He will depart Abuja for Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, on Sunday, and will be accompanied by Geoffrey Onyeama, minister of foreign affairs, and Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, director-general of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA).

In a statement issued on Saturday, Femi Adesina, special adviser to the president on media and publicity, said: “President Muhammadu Buhari will attend the inauguration of the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed for a second five-year term in office on Monday in Addis Ababa.

“The President, who will depart Abuja for the Ethiopian capital on Sunday, is scheduled to deliver a goodwill message at the inauguration ceremony, after which he will attend a State Banquet in honour of visiting Heads of State and Government.

“President Buhari will be accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, and the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ambassador Ahmed Rufai Abubakar.

“Prime Minister Ahmed secured another term in office following the victory of Ethiopia’s governing Prosperity Party in the country’s parliamentary election of June 21.

“In his earlier congratulatory message to the Prime Minister, President Buhari had assured that Nigeria will continue to support the unity and territorial well-being of Ethiopia and all African States.”

The president is expected back in the country on Tuesday.