European Union Delegation Meets with Northern Leaders over Insecurity

A delegation of the European Union (EU), led by the EU Ambassador to Nigeria, David Macrae, has met with chieftains of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) in Kaduna, on Thursday, to discuss how to end insecurity and promote peace and development in the North.

During the meeting, Macrae told the ACF that the North was a large part of Nigeria, charging them not to allow a miniature section of a group to take the region backward: “EU has a very good relationship with Nigeria, it is political, it is commercial, it is developmental. We have a lot of shared interest. When I came in, the challenges that we saw then are not the same with what we are seeing today.

“Since I came, one thing that came to my attention is the development divide which exist in Nigeria.” Macrae also said that though there were some members of the EU that had ties with Nigeria in many areas, there were many things members of the union could do collectively.

He continues: “I have a special interest on how we could engage with the North and I believe anything we want to do have to be with the executives of ACF, it has to be with you… You are covering a range of political spectrum. There might be the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other parties, but as a group you are non-partisan. I have conferred with top northern politicians and they pointed me in your direction and I was told if you want to engage with the North, it has to be with ACF, other groups may come forward, but you have a special position.”