President Muhammadu Buhari has pledged to Nigerians and the international community that his administration will use the remaining years in office to improve access to quality education, health care and enhance productivity, among nine priority areas.
President Buhari, who made the disclosure when he received Letters of Credence from Ambassadors/High Commissioners of the eight countries at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The Credence are official diplomatic letters that appoint a person as ambassador or High Commissioners to another country
The Ambassadors/High Commissioners who presented their Letters of Credence are: Hocine Latil of Algeria; Luong Quoc Thinh of Vietnam and Dr Benson Alfred Bana of Tanzania.
Others included Traore Kalilou of Cote d’Ivoire; Abakar Saleh Chahaimi of Chad; Jamal Mohammed Barrow of Somalia; Brahim Salem El Mami Buseif of Sahrawi Arab Republic and Mohammed Alibak of Iran.
In a statement by Special Adviser (Media & Publicity), the President told the diplomats about Nigeria’s priority, and the need to streamline on people-focused policies.
“In our efforts to achieve a realistic domestic and foreign policy, as well as national development, we have identified the following nine priority areas to guide our policy directions over the next few years,” Buhari was quoted as saying.
“Build a thriving and sustainable economy; Enhance social inclusion and reduce poverty; Enlarge agricultural output for food security and export; Attain energy sufficiency in power and petroleum products and expand transport and other infrastructural development.
“Expand business growth, entrepreneurship and industrialization; Expand access to quality education, affordable healthcare and productivity of Nigerians; Build a system to fight corruption, improve governance and create social cohesion; and improve security for all.”
“I have no doubt that you might have prior and in-depth knowledge of Nigeria’s huge potential which you will hopefully see for yourselves. I therefore, urge you to go around the country, see things for yourselves and report to your home governments. This is important as you all are representatives of both your sending and host states,” he said.
Buhari said Nigeria will remain steadfast in pursuing deeper and valuable relations among nations, without discrimination.
“Nigeria strongly supports joint action to ensure a democratic and fair world order based on strict respect for the norms of international law, the United Nations Charter, recognition of the unquestionable value of cultural diversity, national sovereignty, and the right of all countries to decide their future freely, without external pressure,” the President stated.
“Nigeria does not divide its partners into big and small; we value and respect every country, and with every country we are ready to pursue dialogue, as well as build cooperation on the basis of equality and constructive mutual respect.
“These include our cooperation in strengthening regional, continental and global peace and security, resolving complex issues, settling conflicts, as well as addressing dangerous threats to mankind, among which include terrorism, proliferation of small arms and light weapons, human trafficking, cybercrimes, poverty, communicable diseases and epidemics.”
Speaking on behalf of the Ambassadors/High Commissioners, the Ambassador of Algeria to Nigeria said each of the diplomats brought greetings and agenda from their home governments, but the bottom line remained to enhance cooperation and seek advancement in mutual areas of interest.
“On behalf of my colleagues, we thank you for receiving us. We know that your schedule is tight. As the giant of Africa, you are always focused on resolving conflicts in the continent, while taking care of your domestic issues as well,” he said.
(C) Control TV 2020.
