United States President, Joe Biden, has invited President Bola Tinubu to the country to meet on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York to advance discussions further in September 2023.
The invitation from Biden was made known by the U.S. Presidential Envoy and Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Ambassador Molly Phee, during a meeting with Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Saturday, August 26, 2033.
Phee said: “We know there is more we can do to incentivize 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 economy and the regional economy.
“We appreciate your willingness to create an enabling environment for that. President Joe Biden is asking to meet with you on the sidelines of UNGA and you are the only African leader he has requested to meet. It is a mark of his high regard for your leadership.”
Speaking, Tinubu urged Phee to ensure that U.S. policy is intentionally collaborative with independent African democracies at a time when they are under assault by anti-democratic forces within and outside of the continent.
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Tinubu, according to a statement issued by his spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, noted that American-backed development finance and multilateral institutions, which were designed to support war-torn Europe after World War II, require swift and comprehensive reform to meet the developmental requirements of younger democracies in Africa.
The president said: “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.”
President Tinubu stressed that the crisis in Niger Republic would not deter him from concluding his economic reform programme successfully for the benefit of Nigerians.
He noted that he takes a queue from no nation, but will only advance the interest of Nigeria in his approach toward ECOWAS’ handling of the regional standoff.
Tinubu, therefore, declared that he accepts the invitation to meet President Biden on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, adding that the work of perfecting democracy “is never done, even in developed democracies, as seen recently in America, as well as other emerging democracies in the world.”
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