FRANCE : Fillon in Nigeria to discuss economic ties, maritime security
.
AFP – French Prime Minister Francois Fillon arrived in Nigeria on Friday on a the last leg of a west African trip that will take him to the country’s oil-rich but restive southern region. .
He is scheduled to sign pacts on legal cooperation and helping sub-Saharan Africa’s most populous nation improve security in the Niger Delta.
Accompanied by Total chief executive Christophe de Margerie, the prime minister will visit an oil platform run by the French giant, which gets 10 percent of its oil production from the region.
He will make an address to the 16-nation Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), based in Abuja, before flying off to the restive oil-rich delta on Saturday.
MEND has been behind a series of kidnappings of staff and attacks on oil installations in the past three years.
The most active armed group in the Delta is the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND) which claims to be fighting for a greater share of Nigeria’s oil wealth for local people.
Unrest in the region has reduced Nigeria’s daily output to 1.6 million barrels in January 2006.76 million barrels compared with 2.
Africa – France – François Fillon – Nigeria – piracy