Boko Haram: President Jonathan heads to Lake Chad Basin

President Goodluck Jonathan is scheduled for a one-day official visit to Niamey, capital of Niger Republic, today to participate in an extraordinary summit of Heads of State and Government of the Lake Chad Basin Commission, to review ongoing collaboration against terrorism, Daily Independent reports

He is thus expected to meet with leaders of neighbouring Niger, Chad, Cameroon and Benin Republic, with whom he is expected to agree on further joint action to curb terrorism and insurgency within and across their national boundaries.

An Aso Rock statement recalled that the President and the leaders had resolved at a meeting in Paris in May this year to intensify joint efforts to curtail terrorism and violent extremism.

At the Paris summit hosted by President Francois Hollande of France in the aftermath of the dastardly abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls, the leaders had also agreed to establish joint anti-terrorism patrols and a system of sharing intelligence to support operations against terrorists and other cross-border criminals.

They likewise agreed to create a dedicated team to draw up and advise on the implementation of a regional counter-terrorism strategy under the framework of the Lake Chad Basin Commission.

Benin Republic, which participated in the Paris summit but is not a member of the Lake Chad Basin Commission, has been invited to the Niamey talks, explained the statement issued by presidential spokesman, Reuben Abati.

The Lake Chad Basin Commission was established in 1964 by Nigeria, Chad, Niger and Cameroon with the mandate of sustainably and equitably managing shared water resources of the Lake Chad Basin and promoting regional integration, peace and security across the Basin.

Jonathan will be accompanied to Niamey by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Aminu Wali; Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro; Chief Of Defence, State, Alex Barde and other senior government officials.