Nigeria says committed to construction in peace support areas

08:31, May 23, 2011

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Nigeria's Minister of Defense Adetokunbo Kayode has said the country would be involved in post- conflict construction in peace support areas.

The minister said this on Saturday in Abuja after receiving the Okoi Arigbo Award given to the Defence Ministry by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for its role in peace support operations.

The award ceremony was part of activities making the country's 50 years of foreign relations.

"When you make peace in a country, there is post conflict construction, post conflict engagement and we need to get involved along side other groups that will help these countries come back on their feet," Kayode told his audience.

"We will also bring in businessmen because there is business to be done and Nigeria will encourage them to come, so it will be a partnership thing," he said.

"It should not be that we spend our money, our blood and we pull out as we did in Liberia and Sierra Leone, now we are looking at continuous engagement," he added.

Kayode said Nigeria in the next few months would be helping to develop some military facilities in Liberia as well as assist in the training of soldiers.

"In the past we went into peace keeping and peace maintenance without any clear cut policy, but I can assure you that since I came to the ministry, we have developed a strategic policy in peace support operations whereby after we go in there, we know the different levels of activities we have to undertake," he said.

"The foreign policy states that we should support either the United Nation, African Union and ECOWAS," he added.

Source: Xinhua