In order to invite Presidents to the upcoming West Africa Economic Summit, the Special Envoy of President Bola Tinubu for the West Africa Economic Summit (WAES) and Honourable Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Her Excellency, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, and members of her delegation have so far met with two leaders.
She met with the President of The Gambia, His Excellency, Adama Barrow and a high-ranking official of the Senegalese Government, who received the letter on behalf of the Senegalese Leader
The West Africa Economic Summit is scheduled to take place from June 20 -21, at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja,
A statement by Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, Spokesperson, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Abuja, disclosed that the Special Envoy met with the President of The Gambia, and presented his Official Invitation Letter on Wednesday 11th June 2025 in the Capital City, Banjul.
It added "The presentation was preceded by a very warm reception, accorded the Special Envoy and her team.
"On receiving the invitation from the Special Envoy, the Gambian President thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the proactive and timely initiative in organizing a regional summit where West African leaders and the key stakeholders from various sectors in the region will assemble to discuss intra-regional trade and investment."
He observed that global reality no longer supports donor-recipient relations, given the glaring donor fatigue posturing by the West.
The Gambia leader also opined that to him, there is no better time than now for the region to embrace intra-regional cooperation and partnership.
President Barrow expressed his commitment to The Gambia's active participation at what he considered as a historic gathering that promises to bring a turnaround in the quest for regional integration in Africa.
Amb Odumegwu-Ojukwu and her team also visited Dakar, Senegal on Tuesday, 10th June 2025 to deliver the special invitation from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the Senegalese Leader, which was received by a high-ranking official of the Government.
It noted that the West Africa Economic Summit is a legacy project and initiative under the auspices of President Tinubu, who is the chairman of the Economic Community of West Africa States.
"The Ministry wishes to buttress the fact that the highly anticipated West Africa Economic Summit which will have in attendance Heads of State from the sub-region and an array of business leaders, heads of global institutions and financial experts is expected to create a platform for sustainable economic development and integration." it stated