Tinubu departs Nigeria for UNGA

President Bola Tinubu will leave on Sunday for New York, United States, to attend the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), which will take place from September 18 to 26, 2023.

Chief Ajuri Ngelale, the president’s spokeswoman, stated this Friday while updating State House reporters on the president’s agenda ahead of the annual high-level gathering of world leaders.

Apart from the Nigerian delegation’s participation in the assembly, he noted, there are a number of extremely important side activities that would have far-reaching ramifications for the Nigerian economy.

He stated that Tinubu would meet with prominent CEOs and leaders of international corporations from many areas of the economy, including Brad Smith, President of Microsoft Worldwide.

This, he said, is to see “how we can deepen digital transformation in the country and expand the digital economic footprint to ensure that our micro and small enterprises will have access to the internet and have access to other smart technologies that will facilitate their ability to transact business quickly and efficiently.”

Ngelale went on to say that the President would meet with Sir Nick Clegg, Meta Technologies’ President of Global Affairs, to discuss how to “leverage new innovations such as artificial intelligence and other applications to impact the way we do business in Nigeria.”

According to a presidential spokesperson, the President will also meet with the worldwide CEO of General Electric, who has extensive experience in the energy industry, aviation, and engine development for numerous modes of transportation, among many other areas.

Tinubu will also meet with the worldwide CEO of Exxon Mobil Oil and Gas Company to discuss furthering investment in the oil and gas sector, according to him.

“He is going to continue advancing very aggressively on his economic development and diplomatic drive to aggressively attract foreign direct investment into the country.”

According to the presidential spokeswoman, the president will participate in the Africa Global Business Initiative to highlight the potential available as a result of investment in Nigeria across industries.

Ngelale stated that President Tinubu would preside over the Nigeria Small and Medium Scale Business Summit, which would help MSMEs make an impact in overseas markets.

Furthermore, he stated that the Tinubu would speak at the United Nations High Level Reform of the Global Financial Architecture to put out his vision for a fairer international financial system that does not exclude developing countries from decision-making.

“Aside from that, there will be two major summits at the UN. Aside from general debate at the General Assembly, there is the UN 2023 summit on SDGs, the Sustainable Development Goals, at which Mr. President will be very actively participating.

“And there will also be the UN Secretary General’s Climate Ambition Summit, at which Mr. President will be laying out his plans in concrete detail for Nigeria’s energy transition and the role that our partners in the business community and foreign governments and non-governmental organisations will play in the actualization of Nigeria’s ambition to get to net zero by 2060.

“And these engagements include bilateral meetings on the sidelines, with the President of the United States, with the President of Comoros, with the President of South Africa, with the President of the European Union Commission, with the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, with the King of Jordan, with the Algerian president, with the Brazilian president, and with the Spanish Prime Minister. It’s still dynamic.

“His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, will certainly be one of the most active and sought-after heads of state with respect to his engagement in both bilateral and multilateral platforms.”

During the annual high-level general debate under the theme “Rebuilding trust and reigniting global solidarity: Accelerating action on the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals towards peace, prosperity, progress, and sustainability for all”, heads of state and government and ministers explore solutions to the intertwined global challenges to advance peace, security, and sustainable development.

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