Senator Christopher Coons Leads U.S. Congressional Delegation Visit to Nigeria

An eight member Congressional delegation from the United States led by Senator Christopher Coons (D-Delaware) has arrived Nigeria on Monday August 28 and will stay till Thursday August 31.

Senator Coons is a member of the Appropriations, Foreign Relations, Judiciary, Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and Ethics committees.

The delegation also includes Senator Gary Peters (D-Michigan); Senator Michael Bennet (D-Colorado); Representative Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Delaware); Representative Terri Sewell (D-Alabama); Representative Charlie Dent (R-Pennsylvania); Representative Barbara Lee (D-California); and Representative Frederica Wilson (D-Florida).

The Congressional delegation, according to a press statement by Public Affairs Section (PAS) U.S. Consulate General, Lagos, is visiting Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, and The Gambia in addition to Nigeria during their West Africa tour.

While in Abuja, the U.S. legislators will meet with a range of high-ranking leaders to gain a fulsome picture of the bilateral relationship.

They will be briefed by Ambassador W. Stuart Symington and staff before meeting with Vice President Osinbajo, Senate President Saraki, Speaker of the House of Representatives Dogara, other members of the National Assembly, and religious and civil society leaders.

Among the issues of particular interest to the U.S. officials will be the fight against Boko Haram and the humanitarian situation in the northeast of Nigeria.

They will also visit Lagos, where trade and investment relations will be the theme.  In the country’s financial capital, they will meet with Nigerian business executives, tour the Egbin Thermal Power Plant, participate in an American Business Council roundtable, and conclude with a reception featuring alumni of the Young African Leaders Initiative and the Tony Elemelu Foundation.