President Bola Tinubu on Sunday departed Abuja for Rome, Italy, to attend the high-level Aqaba Process meeting of heads of state and government, focused on tackling terrorism and security challenges, particularly in West Africa.
This was disclosed in a statement by presidential spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, who said the meeting is scheduled to begin on Monday, October 14.
The Aqaba Process is a counter-terrorism initiative launched in 2015 by King Abdullah II of Jordan. Co-chaired by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Italian government, the forum serves as a platform for dialogue on security threats and cooperation strategies, especially relating to West Africa’s growing security concerns.
According to Onanuga, the meeting will bring together heads of state, senior military and intelligence officials from African countries, as well as representatives from international and non-governmental organisations.
“It recognises the complex security challenges confronting West Africa, including the expansion of terrorist networks, the growing crime-terror nexus and the increasing overlap between land-based terrorism in the Sahel and maritime piracy in the Gulf of Guinea,” the statement read.
Discussions will centre on assessing the current security landscape, fostering regional and international cooperation, and developing strategic responses to both land and maritime threats. Participants will also explore measures to combat online radicalisation and dismantle digital networks used for terrorist propaganda and recruitment.
On the sidelines of the meeting, President Tinubu is expected to hold bilateral talks with other world leaders to deepen security collaboration and address shared concerns affecting the West African subregion.
The President is accompanied by a delegation that includes the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Ojukwu; Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru; National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu; and Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, among other senior government officials.
