Niamey Agreement: Jonathan Sees Boko Haram Coming To An End

President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan said Monday in Abuja that he was

confident that with the intensification of joint patrols, military
operations and intelligence sharing by Nigeria and neighbouring countries
as agreed by their leaders in Niamey last week, the activities of
insurgents and other cross-border criminals will soon be drastically
curtailed.

Welcoming the Ministers of Defence and Foreign Affairs of Chad, Niger,
Cameroon and Benin Republic who are in Abuja to work with their Nigerian
counterparts on a legal framework for the cross-border military operations
approved by him and neighbouring heads of state in Niamey, President
Jonathan reiterated his belief that such collaboration was essential for
success in the war against terrorism.

“I am quite pleased with the decisions we took in Niamey to enhance and
boost joint actions against Boko Haram and other cross-border criminals
because we have to work together to defeat Boko Haram and other extremist
groups in our sub-region.

“I believe that if we cooperate more and monitor our borders closely, the
movement of criminals and terrorists as well as small arms and ammunition
across our shared borders will also be drastically reduced,” President
Jonathan told the visiting Ministers who were accompanied to the
Presidential Villa by Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador
Aminu Wali and the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh.

The President said that with their collective experience and
professionalism, he expected the visiting ministers and their Nigerian
counterparts to come up with an effective action plan for the successful
implementation of the decisions reached by the leaders of Nigeria, Chad,
Niger, Cameroon and Benin Republic at their meeting in Niamey on October
7, 2014.

At that meeting, the leaders announced plans to step up the fight against
Boko Haram. A communiqué issued after the meeting said that a command
centre for a multinational force headed by a chief of staff will be in
place by November 20.

The leaders also agreed to finalise the deployment of troops promised by
member states to form the multinational force within their national
borders by November 1.

The visiting ministers at the audience with President Jonathan were
Niger’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Mohammed Bazoun, Cameroon’s
Minister of External Relations, Mr. Pierre Moukoko Mbonjo, Chad’s Minister
of Defence, Mr. Benaindo Tatola, Chad’s Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Muossa Faki Mahamat, Niger’s Minister of Defence, Mr. K. Mahamadou,
Benin’s Minister of Defence, Mr. Robert Yarou, Benin’s Minister of Foreign
Affairs. Mr. Nassirou Bako Arifari and Cameroon’s Minister of Defence, Mr.
Edgar Alain Debe Ngo’o.