President Bola Tinubu has tasked the US with collaborating with African countries in defending their democracies against anti-democratic forces within and outside the continent in order to improve their living standards.
Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, disclosed in a statement that the president said this when he received the U.S. Presidential Envoy and Assistant Secretary for African Affairs, Molly Phee, in Abuja on Saturday.
He said that American-backed development finance and multilateral institutions required comprehensive reforms to meet the developmental requirements of younger democracies in Africa, which operate in authoritarian-crowded environments.
He said that this must be done with vigour as the institutions designed policies to support war-torn Europe after World War II, adding that this would meet the legitimate yearnings of Africans for using local solutions for its challenges.
“Yes, the private sector will lead the way within an enabling environment we create for them, but the U.S. Government must be innovative in its thinking and systematically create incentives for U.S. industrial investment in Nigeria.
‘’Under my leadership, Nigeria stands ready to address their specific regulatory, tax, and environmental concerns. I am determined to create prosperity for all Nigerian families,” the President said.
Tinubu said that the crisis in the Niger Republic would not deter him from concluding his economic reform programme for the benefit of Nigerians, adding that he would only advance the interests of Nigerians in his approach towards ECOWAS’ handling of the regional standoff.
“We are deep in our attempts to peacefully settle the issue in Niger by leveraging our diplomatic tools. I continue to hold ECOWAS back, despite its readiness for all options, in order to exhaust all other remedial mechanisms.
‘’War is not ideal for my economic reforms or for the region, but the defence of democracy is sacrosanct. The ECOWAS consensus is that we will not allow anyone to insincerely buy time,” Tinubu, who is the ECOWAS Chairman, said.
Pledging its support for the position of ECOWAS, the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy expressed the high regard the U.S. Administration has for the leadership of Tinubu as the Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government.
She extended an exclusive invitation from U.S. President Joe Biden to meet on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City to advance discussions further in late September.
“We know there is more we can do to incentivise large-scale American investment in Nigeria, and we are committed to working closely with you to achieve that as part of efforts to strengthen the Nigerian and regional economies.
‘’We appreciate your willingness to create an enabling environment for that. President Joe Biden is asking to meet with you on the sidelines of the UNGA, and you are the only African leader he has requested to meet. It is a mark of his high regard for your leadership,” she said.
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