President Bola Tinubu on Sunday, October 12, 2025, departed Abuje for Rome, the capital of Italy for the Aqaba Process Heads of State and Government Level Meeting starting on Tuesday, October 14, 2025.
A statement signed on Saturday, October 11, 2025, by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, said the gathering focuses on the security crisis in West Africa.
It will have Heads of State and Government, senior intelligence and military officials from African countries, and representatives of intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations in attendance.
At the meeting, participants will discuss the evolving security challenges in West Africa. They will also exchange assessments of the current security landscape in West Africa and foster collaboration between regional and international partners to address cross-border security challenges.
Participants will also develop strategies to counter the terror threat on land and the sea. They will discuss ideas on how to coordinate efforts to combat online radicalisation and disrupt digital networks that facilitate terrorist propaganda and recruitment.
The President is attending the gathering alongside the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ms Bianca Odumegwu–Ojukwu; the Minister of Defence, Mr Mohammed Badaru Abubakar; the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mr Nuhu Ribadu; the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Mr Mohammed Mohammed; and other senior government officials.
In addition to attending the plenary sessions of the Aqaba meeting, Mr Tinubu will hold bilateral talks with other leaders to explore ways of addressing the rising security challenges across the subregion.
The Aqaba Process Meeting is a counter-terrorism initiative launched by King Abdullah II of Jordan in 2015. It is co–chaired by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Italian Government.
It recognises the complex security challenges confronting West Africa, including the expansion of terrorist networks, the growing crime-terror nexus and the increasing overlap between land-based terrorism in the Sahel and the maritime piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.