President Muhammadu Buhari is expected to receive President of the United Nations General Assembly (PGA) Ms Maria Espinosa, who is paying a one-day official visit to Nigeria on Monday. Espinosa’s Spokesperson, Ms Monica Gravley, announced this at a media briefing at the UN headquarters in New York on Friday.
According to her, the PGA’s visit to Nigeria is part of her eight-day official trip to Central and West Africa beginning on Friday. The spokesperson did not disclose the agenda of the PGA’s meeting with the president. Rather, she promised to keep reporters updated on proceedings at the meeting.President Buhari who has been away in London for about two weeks is expected back in Abuja this weekend. Gravley said cabinet members would join Buhari in receiving the PGA, who would later meet with students of the University of Abuja. Espinosa is expected to speak on the role of multilateralism and how to respond to global challenges in a fast-changing world, according to the spokesperson.
Gravley said Espinosa would also meet UN officials in the country and take part in a discussion with women on their role in promoting multilateralism. Multilateralism is an alliance of several nations, for example, the UN, pursuing a common goal. It sought to bind powerful nations, discourage unilateralism (one-sided action) and give small powers a voice and influence they could not otherwise exercise.
However, the system was facing several challenges, especially the dominance of world powers such as the United States in terms of military and economic might. This led other powerful nations, including China and India, to question the relevance of the UN.
Meanwhile, the official visit would also take the PGA to Chad and Ghana where she would meet with the presidents and top officials of both countries. “While in Africa, she will grant interviews to national and international media outlets and hold press conferences,’’ gravley added.