A state visit to Portugal by President Muhammadu Buhari is scheduled to depart Abuja today, June 28, at the request of President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.
Geoffrey Onyeama, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lai Mohammed, Minister of Information and Culture, Adeniyi Adebayo, Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, Sunday Dare, Minister of Youth and Sports, and Isa Pantami, Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, will accompany the President.
Other members include Maj-Gen Babagana Monguno (retired), National Intelligence Agency (NIA) Director General, Honorable Ahmed Rufa’i Abubakar, and Chairman, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM).
President Buhari will receive the nation’s highest honor and be adorned with a “Great Collar of the Order of Prince Henry,” according to a statement made by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu. The two leaders will hold official meetings.
He stated that an expanded bilateral meeting between the two presidents is anticipated, during which some agreements involving matters of shared concern will be signed.
President Buhari will also visit the Portuguese Parliament, where he will meet with Antonio Costa, the country’s prime minister, and its president, Dr. Augusto Santo Silva.
He stated that the President is planned to meet separately with a few selected Portuguese Chief Executive Officers and potential investors in Nigeria as well as speak to a group of Nigerian and Portuguese businesses during the visit.
According to the announcement, Buhari will also take part in the UN Ocean Conference, which started on June 27 and will last until July 1 in Lisbon.
The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) and the governments of Kenya and Portugal are co-hosting the conference, which, according to the statement, aims to hasten the adoption of novel, science-based solutions to problems affecting oceans and the world marine ecosystem.
Shehu stated that the President will speak with Nigerians in Portugal about issues that affected them and domestic events, and he would return to Abuja on Saturday, July 2.
This development is coming on the heels of a recently concluded trip to Kigali, the Rwandan capital, where Buhari joined other African leaders to attend the CHOGM 2022 summit.
