President Bola Tinubu will on Sunday, October 12, depart Abuja for Rome, Italy, where he will join other world leaders for the Aqaba Process Heads of State and Government Meeting, focusing on the escalating security crisis in West Africa.
In a statement signed by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President (Information & Strategy), the high-level meeting, scheduled to begin on October 14, will gather presidents, top intelligence chiefs, and military commanders from across Africa, alongside representatives of key international organisations. The agenda: tackling terrorism, organised crime, and maritime piracy threatening regional stability.
Launched in 2015 by King Abdullah II of Jordan, the Aqaba Process — co-chaired by Jordan and Italy — aims to strengthen global coordination against terrorism and its growing digital footprint. This year’s edition shines a spotlight on West Africa, where the Sahel’s land-based insurgencies increasingly intersect with piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.
Delegates will review the latest security developments, share intelligence, and craft joint strategies to combat terrorism both on land and at sea. The forum will also explore how to curb online radicalisation and disrupt the digital networks that fuel extremist propaganda and recruitment.
Beyond the plenary sessions, President Tinubu is expected to hold bilateral meetings with other leaders to discuss deeper cooperation in addressing cross-border security threats across the subregion.
Accompanying the President are Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu–Ojukwu; Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar; National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu; and Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ambassador Mohammed Mohammed, among other senior officials.
