The Speaker of Kaduna State House of Assembly/Chairman Northern Speakers Forum, Rt. Honourable Yusuf Ibrahim Zailani has said that Nigerians see all Africans as their brothers.
According to a statement signed by his SA Media and Publicity, Ibrahim Dahiru Danfulani, Zailani expressed this when he received the President South West State of Somalia, Abdiaziz Hassan Mohammed alongside his delegation, at the Kaduna State House of Assembly on Tuesday July 6, 2021.
“Here in Nigeria, we see all African countries as our brothers and remain poised to playing the big brother role, owing to our population strength of over 200 million inhabitants,” he said
Zailani told the visitors that Somalia has a lot of similarities with Nigeria.
“Just like ours, your country is a Federal Republic. Your country has a lot of potentials and I believe in the nearest future, it would be a pride to our dear African continent.
“I am pleased that your country’s new provisional constitution which was passed in August 2012, is further reforming Somalia, leading to the formation of the Federal Government of Somalia, paving way for massive reconstruction of your capital city, Baidoa after years of insurgency almost brought it to its knees,” Zailani said.
Speaking further, he said South West State of Somalia population estimate of 2017, which is over 5 million citizens, should be an advantage for them to plan better.
“Kaduna State our sub national, boasts of a population of a little over 10 million. We are taking advantage of that human resource in developing talents in sports and other non formal education sectors like agriculture.
“Kaduna is the largest producer of ginger in Nigeria and it’s quality is said to be among the most sought after the world over, we are also one of the largest producers of Maize.
“Presently, the state government has embarked on a massive urban renewal scheme, which is targeted at creating an enabling environment and shoring up direct foreign investments in the state,” Zailani informed his guests.
He told the South West State of Somalia President that Kaduna State practices open governance, which is an index for rating transparency in governance.
The Speaker added that although the state is multi cultural and multi religious, they cohabit peacefully.
“What I will tell you today is that, you can learn from the system of governance in our state and there is no better teacher, than the Executive Governor, Malam Nasir el-Rufai, who inspires us all.
“The key to success is having a dedicated, focused and committed leader. If that is in place, every other thing falls inline,” he added.
He pointed out that Somalia which maintains an informal economy mainly based on livestock, remittances from its people working abroad, and telecommunications, has huge potentials.
“I believe Mr. President, you have the capacity to translate same to reality,” he added.
Zailani speaking further, said, “Once again I welcome you to Kaduna State and NIgeria, and I will take you on a tour of our beautiful capital city of Kaduna metropolis, so you can see for yourself and observe one or two things you can take back to Somalia and it’s wonderful people.”
In his remarks, the President of the South West State of Somalia, Abdiaziz Hassan Mohammed said that they learnt a lot from their visit to Kaduna State.
“it is an honour to us to visit this historic city and heart of the Northern Nigeria, Kaduna State.
“We learnt a lot from the state government. We had meetings with commissioners, the governor and his deputy. Now we are in Kaduna Assembly where we have been briefed on governance.
“On behalf of the South West State of
Somalia, the president thanks you for the hospitality shown to us throughout our visit.
“We have learnt a lot from this our visit,” he admitted.
The Entourage of the President of the South West State of Somalia included, Abdulahi Ali Watiin (Chief of Staff of the President), Abdifatah Mahat Abdi (Deputy Chief of Staff, Office of the President), Ahmed Mathobe (Ministry of Planning, Investment and Economic Development) and Ahmed Mohammed Hussein (Minister of Finance).
Others are, Mohammed Ali Hassan, (Minister of Commerce and Industry), Kasim Mohammed Abubakar (Member of Parliament), Shuaib Nour Hussein (Secretary, Office of the President). Ahmed Ibraahim Bulle (Camera Man, Office of the President) and Feysal Mohammed Isack (Reporter, Office of the President).
