Tinubu arrives in Ethiopia for 38th AU summit

President Bola Tinubu has touched down in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for the 38th session of the assembly of African Union heads of state and government.

On February 5, the president left Abuja for France for a “private visit”.

Bayo Onanuga, special adviser on information and strategy to the president on information and strategy, had detailed that the president would subsequently visit Ethiopia after the France trip.

In a fresh statement, Onanuga said the president was received at the Addis Ababa airport on Thursday night by Eshetu Legesse, the Ethiopian deputy chief of protocol; Yusuf Tuggar, Nigeria’s minister of foreign affairs; and Nasir Aminu, the charge d’affaires of the Nigerian embassy in Ethiopia.

“Tuggar later briefed President Tinubu about the summit and some diplomatic wins for the country, a session that stretched until about 2 a.m. on Friday,” the statement reads.

“Among the wins was the re-election of Ambassador Bankole Adeoye as African Union Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security. Nigeria also retains its seat on the African Union Peace and Security Council, reaffirming, in the words of Ambassador Tuggar, ‘Nigeria’s leadership and commitment to peace and security on the continent’.

“At the briefing were Mr Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance; Abubakar Badaru, Minister of Defence; Jumoke Oduwole, the Minister of Trade and Investment; Festus Keyamo, Minister of Aviation; Muhammed Idris, Minister of Information and National Orientation; Balarabe Abbas Lawal, Minister of Environment and Doris Uzoka-Anite, Minister of State for Finance.

“Ambassador Mohammed Mohammed, Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, and Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, the Chief of Naval Staff, also attended the briefing.”

The AU summit has as its theme: ‘Justice for Africans and People of African Descent Through Reparations’. It will focus on reparatory justice and racial healing.

Tinubu is billed to deliver a speech at the summit-level meeting of the peace and security council.

Discussions at the security council meeting will revolve around current security challenges on the continent, including the escalation of conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The Nigerian president will also participate in health financing, establishing an Africa credit rating agency, and climate change meetings.

Tinubu will return to Abuja on Monday, February 17, according to the statement from the presidency.