Vice-President Hamid Ansari on 5-day Nigeria, Mali tour

Vice-President Hamid Ansari will embark on a five-day tour of Nigeria and Mali from Monday to further strengthen India’s bilateral engagements with these two West African nations.

Nigeria will be the vice-president’s first country of call where he had been invited by its vice-president Yemi Osinbajo. Mr Ansari will be in Nigeria for three days before leaving for Mali on Thursday.

This will be the first ever high-level visit to Mali from India where Mr Ansari has been invited by Prime Minister Modibo Keita.

The vice-president will be accompanied by his wife Salma Ansari, minister of state for finance Arjun Ram Meghwal, four MPs and a team of senior officials.

In Abuja, Mr Ansari will hold talks with Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, Osinbajo, president of the senate, Speaker of the House of Representatives and deliver an address at the National Defence College of Nigeria.

He will also meet the governor of Lagos and deliver an address at the joint business forum at the University of Lagos.

The vice-president will inaugurate the high commission of India Chancery complex at Abuja and interact with members of the Indian community both in Abuja and Lagos. “The vice president’s visit (to Nigeria) intends to further strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries, expand and diversify bilateral economic engagement and explore new avenues of partnerships on a wide range of issues of shared common interest,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.

In Mali, Mr Ansari will meet the President, the Prime Minister and also address the National Assembly. The visit to Mali is aimed at boosting the relationship between the two countries and explore new areas of cooperation.