Vice President Kashim Shettima has departed Abuja for Davos, Switzerland, to represent Nigeria at the 2025 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, announced this in a statement issued from the State House, Abuja, on Sunday.

The prestigious event, which attracts global leaders, top business executives, and development partners, will focus on addressing pressing global economic issues and fostering solutions to improve global prosperity.

During the high-profile gathering, Vice President Shettima will participate in a series of workshops, bilateral meetings, and strategic forums.

One of the key highlights of his engagement will be a workshop titled “Roadmap to Co-create Investment Opportunities for Africa’s Frontier Markets”.

Organized by the African Development Bank (AfDB) in collaboration with the WEF, the session will explore strategies to boost capital inflows into Africa’s markets and advance sustainable development across the continent.

Notably, the Vice President will join discussions on the launch of the Humanitarian and Resilience Investing (HRI) Roadmap for Africa, which aims to build partnerships between public and private sector leaders to mobilize investments in the region’s emerging markets.

Shettima is also set to co-chair a forum on “Turning Digital Trade into a Catalyst for Growth in Africa”, where participants will deliberate on how to leverage the private sector to implement the AfCFTA Digital Trade Protocol, adopted in January 2024.

The forum underscores Africa’s drive to harness digital trade as a key driver for economic growth and regional integration.

As a panelist at the “Global Risks 2025” dialogue, the Vice President will contribute to discussions on geopolitical, technological, and environmental challenges outlined in the latest Global Risks Report.

This event promises to provide insights into strategies for navigating a rapidly evolving global landscape.

In addition to his scheduled events, Shettima will attend a dinner for heads of state, government, and international organizations, alongside distinguished honorees and business leaders.

Accompanying the Vice President to Davos are key government officials, including the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, and the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Aisha Rimi.

Their presence underscores Nigeria’s commitment to fostering partnerships and attracting investments for national and continental development.

The Vice President is expected to return to Abuja after his engagements in Davos.

The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) has said it will unveil this year’s Seasonal Climate Prediction (SCP) to the public on February 4.

The theme for this year is: The Role of Early Warnings towards a Climate Resilient Aviation Industry for Sustainable Socio-Economic Development.

NiMet predicts and publishes the expected annual pattern of climatic variables, such as rainfall and temperature across Nigeria in the first quarter of each year. This is in pursuance of its mandate of advising the government and the public on all aspects of weather, climate, and water-related matters.

NiMet’s Director General, Prof. Charles Anosike, said: “The Seasonal Climate Prediction highlights vital weather and climate information that may affect socio-economic activities in the following sectors during the year: agriculture, aviation, disaster risk management, health, oil and gas, telecommunication, tourism, transport (water and land), power (hydro and renewable), water resources management, etc.

“The socioeconomic implications of the expected rainfall and temperature patterns for some sectors of the economy are also presented in the publication.”

The forecast information provided in the SCP document includes the onset and cessation dates of the 2025 rainy season; the length of the cropping season; the total amount of rainfall expected in all the 774 local government areas of the country; temperature (January to May) as well as Malaria and Meningitis vigilance forecast.

The SCP document is a national document and the public presentation attracts guests from the public and private sectors, development partners, non-governmental organisations, the diplomatic community, farmers associations, among others.

Aviation and Aerospace Development Minister Festus Keyamo is expected to perform the presentation of the publication alongside its summary for policymakers and translations in three major Nigerian languages, as well as the State of the Climate in Nigeria.

Former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Muhammadu Buhari, as well as the former Minister of Power, Works, and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, are in Paris, France to testify in the ongoing arbitration case involving the $6 billion Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project, THISDAY has learnt.

This is just as President Bola Tinubu declared on Saturday that those defending Nigeria in the said case are doing so based on conviction and patriotism, adding that he has no intention of involving any Nigerian.

However, due to the confidentiality of arbitration proceedings, THISDAY will not report the story in details.

Nigeria is accused of breaching the terms of the power project contract awarded to Sunrise Power and Transmission Limited by former President Obasanjo in 2003.

Obasanjo’s administration had on or about May 22, 2003, awarded the contract for constructing a 3,960MW Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Station on a Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis to Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited.

The former president had accused the Minister of Power and Steel, under his administration, Dr. Olu Agunloye, of fraudulently awarding the contract for the project without the approval of the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

However, Agunloye rejected the former president’s accounts on the project, alleging that the Nigerian government was using him as a scapegoat to escape sanction for abandoning contractual agreements on the project.

Agunloye insisted that the contract for the project was duly awarded in 2003 by the Obasanjo’s administration on a Build, Operate, and Transfer basis.

But Buhari’s administration was said to have communicated the decision to cancel the agreement to the promoter of Sunrise Power, Mr. Leno Adesanya, and Mambilla Power in April 2020.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had also sought to arrest Adesanya and charge him with bribery and economic sabotage but he denied the allegations and proceeded to arbitration.

Adesanya also defended himself against EFCC’s decision to declare him wanted after Sunrise Power and Transmission Limited was accused of offering bribes to Agunloye to win the contract.

The Federal High Court in Abuja presided over Justice Inyang Ekwo had stopped the EFCC from prosecuting Adesanya.

Justice Ekwo, in a judgment, also gave an order of mandatory injunction compelling the EFCC to remove Adesanya’s name and photograph from its wanted list.

However, an Appeal Court sitting in Abuja had stayed the execution of the judgment.

Agunloye is currently being prosecuted by the EFCC on seven counts of charges bordering on official corruption and fraudulent award of the $6 billion Mambilla Power Project contract.

Tinubu: They Did it for Nigeria, I Never Asked Anybody to Do it

Meanwhile, President Tinubu, in a statement issued by his Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, emphasised that those defending Nigeria in the said case are doing so based on conviction and patriotism.

“The attention of the Presidency has been drawn to some fake news on social media about an arbitration proceeding in Paris to which the Nigerian Government is a party.

“The private proceeding, which should not have been reported in the media, is entirely confidential until the international arbitrators decide.

“While respecting the confidentiality of the proceeding, we wish to state categorically that President Bola Tinubu has not forced anyone to testify for or to refrain from testifying against Nigeria.

“All the eminent Nigerians involved in Nigeria’s defence are doing so willingly and out of sheer patriotism and conviction.

“President Tinubu and the entire country are grateful to them”.

Credit: ARISE TV