Cut off funds, arms to Boko Haram – Foreign Ministers

An international meeting on security has called on Nigeria, its neigbouring countries and other partners to ensure that arms supply and funding to the Boko Haram militant sect are cut off.

The meeting, which held on Wednesday in Abuja, regretted that in spite of efforts by the Federal Government and its international partners, the Chibok school girls are still in captivity.

Foreign ministers from Nigeria and neighbouring countries of Cameroon, France, the United Kingdom and Nigeria as well as representatives of Benin, Chad, Niger, United States, Canada, China, United Nations, European Union, ECOWAS and Organisation of Islamic Countries were at the meeting to review the progress of earlier meetings in Paris and London as well as the Africa Summit held in the United States in July, 2014, on the raging Boko Haram insurgency.

Nigeria and its neighbours had agreed at the Paris mini-summit, on a regional plan of action to combat Boko Haram, including seething up joint border patrols and intelligence-sharing to find the over 200 Chibok school girls abducted by Boko Haram in April.

Speaking to journalists at the end of the meeting, Nigeria Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Aminu Wali, said the parley underscored the need to effectively address the sources of funding for and the supply of weapons to Boko Haram.

“The meeting called for greater cooperation of the international community to assist in tracking these sources with a view to putting an end to these practices and all forms of illegal transfer of arms and ammunitions,” he stated.

According to him, the participants also called for strict enforcement of relevant United Nations and other International sanctions against terrorist groups, especially Boko Haram.

It also called for a redoubling of efforts on the part of all concerned given the critical importance of intelligence sharing in the fight against terrorism.

The minister said the participants urged support for the implementation of multi-dimensional measures adopted by the Nigerian government to combat terrorism and called on regional governments and multilateral development institutions to intensify socio-economic cooperation aimed at poverty eradication, economic upliftment and inclusive development.

On the Chibok schoolgirls, the meeting reiterated the need to mobilise support to end their captivity and called for support to end sexual violence with countries being advised to criminalise it.