Presidency Announces Imminent Visit of Top World Leader Amid Tinubu's Leadership, Details Emerge

• United Arab Emirates (UAE) President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has accepted Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s invitation to visit Nigeria this year (2025)
• On Wednesday, January 15, Tinubu held a bilateral meeting with his UAE counterpart, Sheikh Al Nahyan
• Legit.ng understands that Tinubu wants friendship with countries like the UAE, France, and China

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Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering politics and governance.

Abu Dhabi, UAE - United Arab Emirates (UAE) President, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has reportedly accepted Nigerian President Bola Tinubu's invitation to visit Nigeria in 2025.

This is according to a statement on Thursday morning, January 16, by Bayo Onanuga, one of the presidential aides.

The statement, obtained by Legit.ng, said President Tinubu invited Al Nahyan Wednesday night, January 15, during their bilateral talks on the sidelines of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2025.

President Tinubu arrived in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, January 12, as a guest of the UAE President to participate in the Sustainability Week, a forum for exchanging ideas to support sustainable development worldwide and encourage collective action to address global challenges, such as climate change, water and energy crises. He delivered Nigeria's position on climate and other challenges earlier on Wednesday, January 15, and congratulated the UAE leader for the successful event.

UAE leader grateful to Tinubu

During the discussions, Sheikh Al Nahyan thanked the Nigerian leader for accepting his invitation and expressed the UAE's determination to strengthen economic cooperation between Nigeria and his country.

The two leaders also explored attracting investment into Nigeria.

President Tinubu said his government's economic reforms are yielding fruits and called on the UAE to partner with Nigeria to develop the economy, adding that his reforms had stabilised and grown the economy.

The statement from the presidency said Tinubu thanked Sheikh Al Nahyan for the warm reception he and his aides received since their arrival.

Nigeria's entourage in Abu Dhabi

Minister of foreign affairs Yusuf Tuggar; minister of finance Wale Edun, and the national security adviser Nuhu Ribadu accompanied President Tinubu to the meeting at the Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental in Abu Dhabi.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs; Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, deputy chairman of the presidential court for special affairs; and Sheikh Zayed bin Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan accompanied the UAE President.

Other UAE officials at the meeting were: Reem bint Ebrahim Al Hashimy, minister of state for international cooperation; Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, minister of industry and advanced technology, and Salem Saeed Al Shamsi, UAE's Ambassador to Nigeria.

Tinubu dragged to ECOWAS court

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) filed a lawsuit against the administration of President Tinubu at the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Community Court of Justice in Abuja.

The legal matter was over the alleged "repressive use of the Cybercrimes (Amendment) Act 2024 to criminalise legitimate expression and violate the human rights of Nigerians, including activists, journalists, bloggers and social media users.”