President Bola Tinubu on Saturday, October 18, 2025, returned to Nigeria from a trip to Italy for the Aqaba Process Meeting.
The President left Abuja for the Aqaba Process Heads of State and Government Level Meeting on Sunday, October 12, 2025.
The counter-terrorism initiative gathering kicked off on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, in Rome, the capital of Italy and had several others in attendance.
The Aqaba Process was launched by King Abdullah II of Jordan in 2015. It is co-chaired by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Government of Italy.
A statement issued today by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, said the Rome edition focused on strengthening regional and international collaboration in the fight against terrorism and violent extremism, with particular attention to West Africa.
The event was held at the National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art in Rome. Many heads of State and Government attended, including King Abdullah II of Jordan, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and the Presidents of Nigeria, Chad, Paraguay, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
Azouz Nasri, President of Algeria’s Upper House, delegations from Côte d’Ivoire, Kazakhstan, Mauritania, Senegal, and Uzbekistan, special envoys, and security experts were also in attendance.
On the sidelines of the event, Mr Tinubu held bilateral meetings with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and US President Donald Trump’s Senior Adviser on Arab and African Affairs, Massad Boulos.
He also met with the Vatican’s Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, to discuss religious harmony in Nigeria. The meeting addressed speculations of Christians being persecuted in Nigeria.
Since its establishment in 2015, the Aqaba Process has convened 33 meetings at various levels, from Heads of State summits to technical expert sessions. It is built on three core pillars: prevention, coordination, and closing operational gaps in counterterrorism efforts.