By Anwar Usman
President Bola Tinubu has landed in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to attend the 19th Heads of State and Government Summit of the Group of 20 (G20).
The President, who arrived on Sunday at 11.03 p.m. local time (Monday 3. 03 a.m. Nigerian time), was received by Amb. Breno Costa in the Ministry of External Relations of Brazil.
The president was joined by Yusuf Tuggar, the Minister of Foreign Affairs; Idi Mukhtar Maiha, the Minister of Livestock Development; and Hannatu Musawa, the Minister of Art, Tourism, Culture, and Creativity.
Others are the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Dr Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, and the Director General of the National Intelligence Agency, Amb. Mohammed Mohammed.
The president is also expected to hold bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the summit on advancing Nigeria’s socio-economic reforms.
Brazil’s president, Lula da Silva, is hosting the 2024 G20 summit. He has held the group’s rotating presidency since December 21, 2023, and his tenure ends on November 30.
The summit, themed: “Building a Just World and a Sustainable Planet,” will focus on three areas of sustainable development – economic, social, and environmental – and the reform of global governance.
It will also highlight the rising global temperatures and the principles of the digital economy, among other themes.
The Brazilian presidency will also discuss, as a priority, the Israel–Hamas war and the rising bloc confrontation between the United States and China.
NAN reports that the conclusion of the work carried out by the country holding the G20 rotating presidency is usually presented at the annual summit.
It is when heads of state and government approve the agreements negotiated throughout the year and point out ways of dealing with global challenges.
Regarding the summit theme, Da Silva declared a three-point agenda of combating hunger, poverty, and inequality at the summit, scheduled for November 18 to November 19.
Tinubu is attending the 2024 G20 summit, to which the organisers invited representatives of the African Union and the European Union.
The Brazilian Ambassador to Nigeria, Carlos Areias, invited Da Silva to Tinubu to attend the 2024 G20 summit on Aug. 29, when he presented his Letter of Credence to him.
Areias had said Da Silva was looking forward to welcoming Tinubu to the G20 Leaders’ Summit, saying that food security was the main proposal of the Brazilian presidency at the G20 to eliminate extreme poverty by 2030.