Author: Garba Shehu

However, for the last 29 years – close to a generation – there have been none. Since the return of democracy in 1999 there have been six general elections, four elected presidents, four transfers of power – including one in 2015 between the winning opposition candidate and the losing incumbent president seeking re-election.

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China (to some degree, Russia) has, through their Belt and Road Initiative, BRI, found a route to African hearts by helping to close infrastructure  gaps in many countries: roads, bridges, rail, power, water and even agricultural projects. China is today the biggest name in African infrastructure. This was not so a decade ago.  In 2013, Europe commandeered 37% of major African infrastructure projects, while China was in charge of 12%. By 2020, China had gone up to 31% and Europe left with only 12%.

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Our national strategy was laid out before departure, based on a strong optimism that the summit will work well for all the leaders. Turkey is serious about working with Africa in a win-win relationship. Though not yet accepted as a member of the EU, it is a major player in the continent in many ways and is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Turkey also has strong links in the Middle-East. In Asia, the competition is stiff, with China, Japan, South Korea and the rest. But see what discipline, national mobilization and determination have brought Turkey to where it is today. So, Africa may seem for them, a good bet for solidarity and market.

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We agree with many of the historians that the pursuit of closer foreign economic relations is no longer an option and the important need for an upward trajectory in bilateral relationship, first in our own neighbourhood and then in the world are key. This is what necessitated a whirlwind of visits around the world in the President’s First Term.

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The size and magnitude of the road projects notwithstanding, the clamour by Nigerians for more motorable roads is not abating, and neither is the President Muhammadu Buhari Government’s commitment to delivering on an improved national road network, which it inherited at different stages of disrepair from previous administrations. When there is a will, as the adage goes, there will be a way or two.

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