President Bola Ahmed Tinubu arrived in Abuja late Sunday night following his official engagements in the People’s Republic of China and a brief stopover in the United Kingdom.
Touching down at the Presidential Wing of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport around 10:40 p.m., the President was welcomed by senior members of his administration.
The President’s return marks the end of a 16-day trip, which began on September 2 with a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
During his stay in China, President Tinubu received a warm reception, including a 21-gun salute and an inspection of a guard of honor.
Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, highlighted in a statement released Saturday evening that President Tinubu’s visit to China was marked by productive discussions aimed at strengthening bilateral ties between the two nations.
“During bilateral meeting with President Jinping, five Memoranda of understanding were signed between Nigeria and China.
“President Tinubu led his delegation to another round of bilateral talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang the following day.
“On the evening of the same day, President Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan, hosted him at the Welcoming Banquet and Cultural Gala Performance on the eve of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Summit.
“Among the MOUs signed were the Cooperation Plan between Nigeria and China, which was to jointly promote the Belt and Road Initiative, cooperation in the peaceful application of nuclear energy, and strengthening cooperation on human resource development under the Global Development Initiative.
“Others were the Memorandum of Understanding on Media Exchange and Cooperation and the Memorandum of Understanding between China Media Group and the Nigerian Television Authority”, the statement said.
According to Onanuga, “Nigeria also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) to build the 68 km Lagos Green rail line, designed to run from the Lekki Free Zone to the Marina and connect with the Blue Line.
“A memorandum of understanding for the $1 billion iron ore-to-steel project planned for Kogi State was also signed between Chart and Capstone Integrated Limited of Nigeria and Sinomach-He of China.
“Before attending the opening of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing, President Tinubu visited two Chinese companies: Huawei and China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC).
“At FOCAC, President Tinubu, as chairman of ECOWAS, delivered a paper on global peace, stressing multilateralism and cooperation as essential ingredients for international peace.
“He capped his visit to China with a meeting with representatives of Nigerians in the Diaspora Organisation, China chapter, during which he spoke on the necessity of the reforms being implemented by his government in Nigeria and hoped that they would lead the country to a destination of good roads, constant power, and good schools, like in China.
“President Tinubu left Beijing for London, where he spent some days. On Thursday, he met with King Charles III, where he discussed issues related to climate change and action”, the statement said.
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