African leaders must speak with one voice - Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has called on African leaders to speak ‘with one voice’, independent of foreign influence. The President, in a statement on Saturday, said this would help to achieve economic integration, development, peace, and security on the continent.

According to the statement signed by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr Garba Shehu, President Buhari spoke on Friday night at a bilateral meeting with President Alpha Conde of Guinea in Istanbul, Turkey.

He stressed the need for African leaders to learn from history to effectively tackle conflicts, violent extremism, and proliferation of small arms and light weapons.

“The two Presidents, who met on the margins of the ninth D-8 Summit in Istanbul, exchanged views on bilateral relations, as well as regional and international issues of mutual interest,” the statement said.

ALSO READ: Osinbajo charges African leaders to fight poverty

President Buhari assured his Guinean counterpart, who is also the current Chairman of African Union that Nigeria would continue to strengthen its engagement with all AU member-states to address the security challenges in restive areas such as South Sudan and Libya, and the political crisis in Togo.

In his remarks, President Conde commended Nigeria’s leadership role on the continent, particularly President Buhari’s anti-corruption drive and his strong voice on African issues at the international stage.

The Guinean leader also stressed the need for Guinea and Nigeria to accelerate economic cooperation, particularly in the natural resources sector, where Guinea boasts of 25 percent or more of the world’s known bauxite reserves.