Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma expresses solidarity with the Government of Nigeria and families of the 276 schoolgirls who were abducted from a secondary school in Chibok, Borno State in April.
Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma has expressed solidarity with the Government of Nigeria and families of the 276 school girls who were abducted from a secondary school in Chibok in Borno State in April. He condemned the continued terror attacks in the country.
The Secretary-General was commenting during his two-day visit to Abuja this week to underline the Commonwealth's continued concern and to explore options for practical Commonwealth support for Nigeria following the abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls earlier in the year.
"The Commonwealth condemned the outrageous act of abducting the Chibok girls, and we continue to express our support for all efforts to bring the girls safely home, as well as our concern for all those many other Nigerian citizens whose lives and families have been affected by terrorism."
Mr Sharma was commenting after meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan at Aso Rock State House in Abuja.
The Secretary-General said the Commonwealth’s strength lies in promoting social cohesion, harmony, resolution of grievances, equality and respect and understanding. He offered Commonwealth support, using distilled examples and experiences contained in the Commonwealth seminal publication known as ‘Civil Paths to Peace.’ The publication which was produced by the Commonwealth Committee on Respect and understanding, explores practical ways for promoting peaceful living in diverse communities.
"The Commonwealth is particularly well placed and we have offered to assist in the areas of young people, women, education and the media, " Mr Sharma said. He also briefed President Jonathan about current Commonwealth priorities, including preparations for the Commonwealth Summit, which will take place in Malta in 2015.
Mr Sharma informed the President about Commonwealth initiatives for promoting youth enterprise to create jobs for young people, as well as Commonwealth input in shaping the post- 2015 development agenda.
The Secretary-General also met the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Aminu Bashir Wali and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.