NIGERIAN President Goodluck Jonathan’s delegation landed at a military airport in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad at approximately 2 p.m. local time on Wednesday.
Pakistan Minister in Charge of Kashmir, Mr. Manzor Wotto, received the president who is in the country to attend the summit of the Heads of State and Government of Eight Developing nations, otherwise known as the D-8.
President Jonathan, the outgoing chairman of the organization, is expected to open the session of the Summit of the Heads of State and Government of the D8 on Thursday.
Subsequently, he would hand over the chairmanship post to his host, President Azif Zardari, who would then chair the summit’s meeting.
The summit will deliberate on the theme “Democratic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity’’ and endorsed the D-8 Charter and the D-8 Global Vision.
Mr. Jonathan assumed leadership of the body in April 2010 when Nigeria hosted its 7th bi-annual summit.
On the sidelines of the summit, the president will hold bilateral meetings with the leaders of some member countries and will also meet with the Nigerian communities in Pakistan.
Also, according to the president’s chief media adviser Dr. Reuben Abati, Nigeria will be signing a Bi-lateral Air Service Agreement with Pakistani to pave the way for direct flights between both countries, among other similar benefits.
The decision was reached on Wednesday in Islamabad, at a closed-door bilateral meeting between Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Asif Zardari of Pakistan.
Briefing newsmen on the outcome of the meeting, Dr. Abati said that the two leaders agreed to invigorate the existing Nigeria-Pakistani Joint Commission.
He said they agreed that the invigoration of the joint commission would promote trade relations and co-operations between the two countries.
Abati said the two leaders acknowledged the need to strengthen the existing cooperation between both countries, particularly in the area of security, military and banking.
President Jonathan is scheduled to hold similar Bi-lateral meetings with other member countries of the organization.
Other member countries of the D-8 include Malaysia, Turkey, Iran, Bangladesh, Egypt and Indonesia.
Established in 1997 in Istanbul, Turkey, the organization seeks to promote development and cooperation among member countries.
Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Olugbenga Ashiru, told the press that the D8 had achieved a lot, particularly in the last two years that it was piloted by Nigeria.
“We have been able to achieve the integration of a group of eight developing countries D8 and the whole group contains one billion of the world’s population.
“When you look in terms of market, that is a huge proportion and we have been able to achieve the task of making our private sector the engine of our economic growth in those countries.
“In the last two years, we have had exchange of visits by our private sector. Our NACCIMA, they have been able to integrate and interact with the other private sector from most of the other countries, thereby leading to an increase in trade volumes of member States.
“Also, we have been able to have preferential trade concession with member states which is also working.
“We have also been able to have visa abolition among member States on collateral basis.
“I was the one that signed the one for Turkey whereby our officials, businessmen travelling within those two countries can travel without having to go and queue up for visa,’’ he said.