President Muhammadu Buhari will leave Abuja Friday to participate in the 5th Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) Summit in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.
Apart from the Nigerian leader, the one-day meeting will be attended by leaders of major gas producing nations of the world namely, Algeria, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Libya, Bolivia, Iran, Qatar, Russia, Trinidad and Tobago, United Arab Emirates, Venezuela, Kazakhstan and Norway, whose countries account for 70 per cent and 80 per cent of global gas reserves and production respectively.
The senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity Garba Shehu said, the idea of the GECF was first mooted in 2001 when the First Ministerial Meeting held in Tehran, Iran, while the First GECF otherwise called Gas Summit, took place in Doha, Qatar in 2011 with Nigeria represented at the highest level.
President Buhari had attended the Third Gas Summit in Tehran in November 2015.
The Fifth Gas Summit in Malabo is the first time the biennial meeting will be hosted in Africa.
On November 19, 2019, President Buhari had received Gabriel Mbega Obiang Lima, the Special Envoy of President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, who brought a special invitation to the Nigerian leader to attend the 5th Gas Summit as well as thanking Nigeria for her support towards the hosting.
The Nigerian delegation will also use the opportunity to discuss current trends in the global gas market, potential policies for the energy sector and opportunities for collaboration.
At the end of the 5th Gas Summit, the Malabo Declaration is expected to be adopted.
President Buhari will be accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama; Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva; Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Olamilekan Adegbite; and the Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mele Kolo Kyari.
After the Summit, President Buhari will head for Daura, Katsina State on a five-day official visit.
