Presidency says countries would cooperate on boosting oil price

Nigeria and Angola on Saturday agreed to cooperate and also reach out to other oil producing countries in an effort to shore up the dwindling price of oil in the global market.

This is contained in a statement issued in Abuja on Saturday by Femi Adesina, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to President Muhammadu Buhari.

It said that this understanding was struck when President Buhari and his Angolan counterpart, Jose Eduardo dos Santos, met at the sidelines of the Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The statement said that President Buhari, who agreed with President Eduardo dos Santos that there was no logic in producing more oil for less money, called for a new consensus among oil producing nations on the current level of oil price.

"The two leaders while acknowledging that their countries depend heavily on oil for sustaining their national economies, agreed to get their oil ministers to meet urgently with a view to finding a way forward,’’ the statement maintained.

He also expressed sympathy with Nigeria on its security challenges.

President Eduardo dos Santos, however, expressed optimism that President Buhari would soon restore peace to Nigeria given his military background.

According to him, Nigeria is an important country in Africa that is traditionally looked upon to help solve problems on the continent.

He said that his country and Nigeria which shared similar security and oil challenges in the Gulf of Guinea must forge closer relationship to overcome these challenges.

President Eduardo dos Santos said he looked forward to meeting President Buhari again and invited him to visit Angola next year with a view to finding solutions to common problems and deepening bilateral relations.