Biden To Meet Buhari, 48 African Leaders

09 Dec Biden To Meet Buhari, 48 African Leaders

US President, Joe Biden, has invited 49 African heads including President Muhammadu Buhari, to Washington D.C. for a three-day US-Africa Leaders’ Summit, to be held December 13-15, 2022.

Also invited to the summit is the head of the African Union.

The United States Diplomatic Mission to Nigeria, in a statement, said the summit will deepen US Partnerships with Nigeria and other African democracies.

“The goal of this historic summit will be to build and expand vital political, economic, and strategic partnerships, as well as people-to-people dialogue, based on mutual interests and shared priorities in Africa.

“The summit’s agenda will be packed, including increasing sustainable food production, strengthening health systems, providing humanitarian assistance, responding to the climate crisis, reinforcing democracy and human rights, boosting US-African trade, advancing peace and security, and even enhancing space research and cooperation.

“President Biden believes that US collaboration with African leaders, as well as civil society, business, diaspora, women, and youth leaders, is essential to addressing these shared challenges:, the Mission said.

The Mission further said the summit is also an opportunity for the United States and the American people to reiterate their profound and enduring interest in engaging with Africa as a whole.

“As Secretary of State, Blinken, noted during his trips to Nigeria last year and to other countries in the region earlier this year, Africa’s demographic growth and economic potential will shape not just the future of its people, it will also shape the world,” the United States Diplomatic Mission to Nigeria also said.

United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Mary Beth Leonard, said the upcoming summit presents opportunities to deepen US-Nigeria bilateral ties on multiple levels.

“We look forward not only to the Nigerian government’s robust participation in the summit, but also to hearing the views of all stakeholders in Nigeria’s promising future, including independent voices from the private sector, civil society, young people, women, and all those who are working to build a strong and inclusive democracy”, Leonard said.