Presidential Research & Communications Unit

President Umaru Musa Yar’adua has expressed Nigeria’s preference for a “gradualist approach” to the establishment of a Union Government in Africa because of the critical need at the moment for the African countries to focus more on the urgent task of strengthening and consolidating internal governance and growth structures.

The President who stated this while making Nigeria’s contribution to the “Grand Debate on Union Government” at the 9th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union, on July 2 in Accra, Ghana noted that Nigeria has always supported the principle of the ultimate goal of the African Union being “full and political integration leading to the evolvement of a United States of Africa”.

He observed, however, that the critical issue before the Assembly was the question of whether to fast track the process or to pursue the same objective through “gradual incrementalism”.

(Click to read speech.)

The President also said that the “critical importance” of a “definitive” identification and clarification of “the vital institutional and operational challenges” which the concept of Union Government throws up, strengthened the case for a gradualist approach.

Earlier, President Yar’adua and the new Mauritanian President were formally received into the Assembly of African Heads of State and Government.

He thanked his “brother and sister Heads of State and Government across Africa” for the “overwhelming felicitation and solidarity on our historic political transition” which heralded his emergence as Nigeria’s President.

He also held private meetings with President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa, President Boni Yayi of Benin Republic and President Bouteflika of Algeria.

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