President Bola Tinubu has called on West African countries to band together in order to defeat terrorism, human trafficking, banditry and other criminal activities in the region.
The President made the call on Thursday at the State House in Abuja while receiving President Bassirou Faye of Senegal.
President Tinubu also called for an alignment of purpose and structure in West Africa to effectively address the challenges confronting the region.
A statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, quoted President Tinubu as saying that the essence of democracy would be lost when the people are not the focal point.
Describing Nigeria and Senegal as brotherly nations, President Tinubu recounted both countries’ long history of cooperation and tasked the Senegalese President to collaborate with ECOWAS by meeting and persuading Burkina Faso, Nigér and Mali – back into the ECOWAS community.
In his remarks, President Faye acknowledged Nigeria and Senegal’s shared values, ideals, and challenges, emphasizing that both nations have always had good relations since the 1960s.
He called for the reactivation of the Nigeria-Senegal joint commission to strengthen bilateral relations across the areas of diplomacy and trade among others