Buhari to OPEC: Consider our 200m poor people in oil production cuts sharing

President Muhammadu Buhari has urged the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries to consider the weight of the responsibility of the nation with “200 million poor people, with severe deficit in infrastructure” when sharing oil production cuts.

He spoke yesterday at the State House, Abuja, during a meeting with Dr Omar Farouk from Nigeria, who is the Secretary General of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation.

He made the appeal while speaking specifically on the peculiar challenges facing the country amid its large population and immense deficit in infrastructure.

Buhari, in a statement issued by his spokesman, Garba Shehu, welcomed the decision of APPO to site the headquarters of the African Energy Investment Corporation in Abuja and promised the full support of the country in ensuring the successful take off of the organisation.

He said Nigeria would pay for its share subscription, noting that the peculiarities of the challenges facing African oil producers required them to come together under the association to share experiences and solve their problems collectively.

He said the growing clamour for a reduction in the use of fossil fuels notwithstanding, countries like Nigeria needed to produce more oil to feed the petrochemical industry and create jobs.

The Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, said the proposed APPO Energy Investment Corporation to be sited in Abuja would start with $1bin from the AFRO-EXIM Bank and is expected to bring employment and other benefits to Nigeria.