Buhari tasks international community on strategic alliance against COVID-19

Condoles with Nigerien leader over minister’s death
President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday in Abuja said only a collective international approach would mitigate the devastating effects of COVID-19, pledging that his government would intensify efforts to monitor, test and isolate more people, especially at the community level.

Participating in a virtual summit of the heads of state and government of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), Buhari said national, regional and global strategies were required to tackle the pandemic, which, he said, had ravaged humanity and caused unprecedented devastation to the well-being of people, their livelihoods and the global economy.

He said: “The theme of this extra-ordinary summit, ‘United Against COVID-19 Pandemic’, aptly reflects the importance for a proactive approach and the need for multilateral cooperation in finding quick solutions to the challenges that the scourge poses to our nations.

“Since the outbreak of the disease, countries have made concerted efforts to limit the spread of the pandemic within and outside their borders as well as treating those infected by the virus.

“Two weeks ago, we, in West Africa, came together to work out a common sub-regional response to the crisis. The summit appointed me the Champion to lead our efforts on fighting the pandemic in our region.”

He said the task before the international community remained daunting, adding that more needed to be done to reduce the impact of the novel coronavirus.

In his goodwill message, President of the UN General Assembly, Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, promised that his office would continue to work with the movement to promote partnerships and galvanise the needed engagement to defeat the pestilence and reduce its impact on communities.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian leader has called his Nigerien colleague, Mahamadou Issoufou, to commiserate with him on the death of his Minister of Employment and Labour, Mohammed Ben Omar.

In a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, he described the late minister as “a highly endowed and dedicated politician who gave his best for the progress, prosperity and socio-economic development of his country.”