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Aisha Buhari, others bags UFUK dialogue of peace award

Published

7 years ago

May 20, 2019

Aisha Buhari, others bags UFUK dialogue of peace award

Wife of the Nigeria President, Mrs Aisha Buhari and a host of others have bagged the UFUK dialogue award of peace.

The event was also organised by the UFUK dialogue,a non-profit to organisation in Abuja to confer awards on some exceptional personalities in Nigeria for their wonderful effort and support in developing a peaceful society.

It was founded in FCT, Abuja for the purpose of promoting dialogue, culture of co-existence, mutual understanding and to establish a common interfaith, intercultural and intellectual platform aimed at providing information and opinion exchange.

The event which attracted people from all walks of life was put together to celebrate people and organisations that have been contributing to societal peace in Nigeria.

While speaking at the event, the president of Ufuk Dialogue, Kamil Kemanci, said that Ufuk Dialogue
serves to stand by societal peace, love, respect and compassion in support of human dignity and the greater good by striving to preserve the common values of humanity.

He said values such as respect,
tolerance, peace and mutual understanding were among the ingredients for the award.

He said the theme of the 7th edition of the dialogue was Countering Violent Extremism Through Love and Tolerance.

Kemanci said the dialogue also brought people of different faiths and ethnic backgrounds around the same table.

“Today, we need dialogue and peace more than we need food and shelter.

“Dialogue and peaceful
coexistence have always been and still remain a need, a must for us to have a healthy and more
productive society.”

According to Kemanci, in dialogue, it is possible to transform conflict into cooperation.

Others dignitaries that were also awarded are: Rev. Samson Ayokunle, President, Christian Association of Nigeria, Sheikh Shariff Ibrahim Saleh Al-Hussaini, Chairman, Fatwa Committee Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs and Cahirman, Assembly of Muslims in Nigeria.

Others includes: Most Rev. Dr Augustine Ukwuoma, Chairman, Pastoral Agents Catholic Bishop’s Conference, Prof. Amidu SANNI, Vice Chancellor Fountain University, Osogbo-OSUN STATE, Fr. Prof. Hycianth Ichoku, Vice Chancellor Veritas University.

Also,Mrs Pauline Tallen, Board Member, National Agency for The Control of AIDS, Festus Keyamo, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Apostle Alexandre Bamgbola, Chairman Lagos State Christian Association of Nigeria.
Rt. Honourable Mudashir Obasa, Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, among others.

One of the awardees, Pauline Tallen, while commending the Ufuk Dialogue, organisers of the
event and dedicating the award to all Nigerians said, “My prayer is that God will make all the efforts
of Ufuk Dialogue in establishing peace and love among us to be successful.

“Whether we are of the Christian or Muslim faith or any other, we are all children of God and therefore, we need to learn to live in peace with one another.

Also, the speaker of Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon Mudashiru Obasa, represented by
Misbau Aminu emphasised that peace can only bring about trust, economic prosperity and good education.

NAN

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Alake Inaugurates Nigeria-US Solid Minerals Committee, Dismisses $700bn Claim, Says No Assets Sold

Published

5 days ago

October 28, 2026

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, on Tuesday inaugurated the Nigeria-United States Committee on Strategic Cooperation in the Solid Minerals Sector in Abuja, dismissing reports that Nigeria sold $700 billion worth of solid minerals to the US.

The inauguration followed the strategic cooperation framework established between Nigeria and the United States during the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Head PRESS and Public Relations Department Mrs. Kania Maliki Andeyaba stated that, Alake in the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, signed with the US is a government-to-government platform to facilitate business-to-business engagements between American investors and Nigerian local operators, not a sale of assets.

Harping on the importance of the solid minerals sector to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic diversification agenda, he noted that the administration was committed to reducing dependence on a mono-product economy through the sustainable development of Nigeria’s vast mineral resources.

According to him, the Nigeria–US partnership as a strategic initiative to attract investment, promote technology transfer, strengthen local mineral processing and create employment opportunities.

“There is no sale of any Nigerian asset. There’s nothing exchanging hands,” Alake declared.

“We created a platform to facilitate mingling of US investment ventures with Nigeria’s local operators. It is in the public domain. We signed it in public and published it in four or five national newspapers.”

The Minister said reports claiming the US was coming to take over Nigeria’s minerals and security architecture were untrue at best and products of riotous imagination at worst.

Explaining the policy thrust, Alake said Africa has historically held the short end of the stick in global economic transactions, and Nigeria is determined to change that model.

“We have the resources, the critical elements the world needs to transit to clean energy. So we are creating a new paradigm — you bring your capital, expertise and technology, to match with our natural resources and create a win-win situation . The investor gains, Nigeria gains.’’he said.

Nigeria, he stressed, had operated a mono-cultural economy dependent on oil, while solid minerals were exploited informally — with ores taken “from pit to port” without value addition.

Alake said government has now made local processing mandatory, refusing to grant mineral titles to investors without a clear pathway to processing in Nigeria.

He said the policy led to the springing up of processing factories, including the largest lithium processing plant in West Africa commissioned recently in Nasarawa by the Vice President, and informed the formation of the African Minerals Strategy Group.

Alake noted that investor confidence has returned due to macro-economic reforms by President Bola Tinubu that guarantee security of tenure and repatriation of profits.

He charged the committee to discharge its assignment responsibly, saying its work is strategic to achieving the President’s $1 trillion economy target.

To this end, he told the Committee to ensure effective coordination, identify investment opportunities and translate the framework into measurable outcomes capable of positioning Nigeria as a competitive player in the global solid minerals industry.

In his welcome address, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Engr. Faruk Yusuf Yabo, said the inauguration translates growing bilateral engagements into a structured framework for practical cooperation and investment mobilization

Economic Officer at the US Embassy, Jonathan Baas, said President Donald Trump has prioritized three areas for US embassies — energy, artificial intelligence/super intelligence, and critical minerals.

Baas said Washington’s direction is to work with partners to secure critical supply chains while ensuring partners capture value.

“We just signed a contract today on looking into building AI data centres in Nigeria at the Nigerian Economic Summit. That’s the direction Washington wants us to go,” he said.

In his vote of thanks, CEO/Managing Director of Nigeria Solid Minerals Company, NSMC said that the committee

is expected to coordinate implementation, facilitate investment and monitor progress towards achieving the objectives of the Nigeria–US cooperation framework.

The inauguration reinforces the Federal Government’s commitment to repositioning the solid minerals sector as a key driver of economic diversification, industrial development and national prosperity under President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

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