President Bola Tinubu has arrived in Rome, the capital of Italy, for the Aqaba Process Heads of State and Government Level Meeting, with special focus on the security crisis in West Africa.
The Presidential air plane landed at the Rome Fiumicino International Airport at 07:20pm local time on Sunday evening.
The meeting, which will begin on Tuesday is expected to bring together Heads of State and Government, senior intelligence and military officials from African countries, and representatives of intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations to discuss the evolving security challenges in West Africa.
The Aqaba Process Meeting, a counter-terrorism initiative was launched by King Abdullah II of Jordan in 2015.
It is co–chaired by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Italian Government.
The 2025 edition acknowledges the demanding 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 the maritime piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.
Focus
The meeting will discuss ideas on strategies to coordinate efforts to counter terror, combat online radicalisation and disrupt digital networks that facilitate terrorist propaganda and recruitment.
In a statement, the Presidential Spokesperson, Mr Bayo Onanuga stated that “in addition to attending the plenary sessions of the Aqaba meeting, President Tinubu will hold bilateral talks with other leaders to explore ways of addressing the rising security challenges across the subregion.”
Olusola Akintonde