Jonathan Heads For Dakar To Attend African Union’s Summit

President Goodluck Jonathan is expected to leave Abuja today for Dakar at the head of Nigeria’s delegation to the African Union’s Summit on Financing Infrastructure Development. The Summit is scheduled to hold in the Senegalese capital tomorrow, Sunday.
A statement from Dr. Reuben Abati, the special adviser on media and publicity to the President said that Jonathan will join other participants to deliberate on how to accelerate the implementation of key priority  infrastructure projects within the framework of the African Union’s Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa.
He said that the participants at the Summit which has been convened under the auspices of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) will also brainstorm on the mobilization of domestic financial resources for infrastructure development, the creation of conducive policy environments to enhance investments in infrastructure development and the leveraging of Public-Private Partnerships for continental infrastructure transformation.
“The summit is expected to pay particular attention to the evolution of fresh strategies for the financing of high priority infrastructure projects such as regional road and rail networks, power supply and ports development.”
Other participants, according to Dr. Abati, will include Heads of State and Government of other African nations, representatives of the United Nations, the African Union, global financial institutions and leading investors.
He said that Nigeria’s leader will be accompanied by the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and the Minister of Industries, Trade and Investment, Dr. Olusegun Aganga. Others are the Minister of Works, Mr. Mike Onolememen, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Dr. Nurudeen Mohammed and the Presidential Special Adviser on NEPAD, Ambassador Fidelia Njeze.
Dr. Abati said that the President is expected to return to Nigeria tomorrow after the conclusion of the summit. [myad]