NIGERIA AMONG LARGEST TROOP CONTRIBUTORS TO UN – MINISTER

Foreign Affairs Minister Odein Ajumogobia said Nigeria is the fourth largest troop contributor to the UN peace keeping operations.Disclosing this during a ministerial briefing in Abuja,  the Minister said Nigeria currently  has  about  5,700  peace keepers  in Darfur and Sudan .

He said Nigeria has participated in forty of UN peace keeping operations so far, adding that the country's   extensive involvement   justified her quest for a permanent seat in the expanded United Nations Security Council.

He said funding and redefinition of terms of engagement or mandate are   major challenges of peace keeping operations at the moment.

African leaders at the Kampala meeting agreed on the need   to change the mandate of the peace keepers in Somalia to check the threat   posed by the Al-shabab insurgents.

Ajumogobia said Nigeria has signed joint Commission Developments with 68 countries for the purpose of strengthening and enhancing national economy.

The country has also participated in dialogues aimed at improving cooperation and development between Africa, other regions and countries of the world and supported   constitutional transfer of power in the West African region like Niger, Cote d'Ivoire and Guinea

He explained that Nigeria has signed bilateral agreements with UK, Switzerland and USA to check irregular migration from Nigeria to other parts of the world, while negotiations with India, China, Indonesia and Thailand among others were on going.