Nigeria-EU Sign €50m MoU to Support Humanitarian Mission

• Nigeria-EU Sign €50m MoU to Support Humanitarian Mission

The Nigerian Government on Thursday signed a €50 million Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the European Union to support humanitarian and development efforts in the country’s war torn North-east region.

According to a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, the cooperation agreement which was signed by Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, and the EU Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development, Neven Mimica, would bring the total EU support to the country to €562million from 2014-2020.

Adesina also said that Buhari appreciated the gesture of the EU and that he told them that their contributions would be useful especially to the North-east with internally displaced camps, he described as pathetic.

He further called for extra support to improve the education of youths in Nigeria in order to take them out of poverty.

Adesina said that the EU commissioner responded that Nigeria’s request would be given top priority as it came at a time EU was in the process of preparing its seven-year budget.

According to Adesina, during a bilateral meeting between the Nigerian delegation and Japanese officials led by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, on the margins of seventh Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD7), Buhari sought the assistance of the Japanese government to fight piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.

Adesina added that the Japanese Prime Minister resolved to sign the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).

On the Prime Minister speech, Adesina said, “Commending the Buhari administration for taking Nigeria to the Next Level, Mr Abe pledged a $300,000 support for Nigeria’s Defence College as well as 12 million Yen for the country’s public health sector.

“He also pledged his country’s support for Nigeria’s Presidency of the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, while seeking Nigeria’s support for Japan’s bid to occupy some global positions.”