…Buhari says Nigeria-China partnership yields over $5bn in projects***
Hundreds of migrants have fled a detention centre in Libya’s capital Tripoli as fighting rages nearby, an aid worker said on Tuesday, confirming what a video posted on social media showed.
A spokesman for Libya’s department to fight illegal migration denied migrants had escaped but the aid official working at an international organisation said as many as 1,800 might have left the facility located near airport road.
NAN reports that on May 16, 100 east African migrants escaped from a camp in the Libyan town of Bani Walid where they were being held hostage and tortured, international agencies and local source said.
The migrants from Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia fled to a mosque in the town where they were taken in by local associations and residents.
The hospital in Bani Walid said around 20 of them were being treated for injuries from torture.
According to Doctors Without Borders (MSF), in a statement quoting witnesses, 15 migrants were killed and 25 injured during the escape, but there was no immediate confirmation from local sources.
Some of those who escaped, mostly adolescents, told MSF rescue workers that they had been held by people traffickers for up to three years.
The medical charity said seven of those hospitalised had serious gunshot wounds.
“This is another example of the ongoing horrors suffered by many migrants and refugees while transiting through Libya” MSF said, adding that “kidnapping for ransom remains a thriving business”.
Bani Walid, 170 km southeast of the Libyan capital Tripoli, is a transit point for migrants aiming to reach Europe by boat from the coast further north.
People traffickers and kidnappers run around 20 detention centres in the town, telephoning the migrants’ families to deliver ransom demands.
Since the 2011 fall and killing of longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi, Libya has become a key launchpad for migrants making desperate bids to reach Europe.
The conflict-riven country is regularly singled out for the exploitation and ill-treatment of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa.
Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari indicated Tuesday In Beijing China, that Ngeria’s partnership with China through the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) has resulted in the execution of vital infrastructure projects across the country, valued at over $5 billion.
The President disclosed this in a statement in Abuja by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, noting that the president’s disclosure was at the FOCAC Round Table meeting, attended by African leaders and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
He quoted Buhari as having listed specific projects executed through the Chinese support under FOCAC in the last three years to include areas of infrastructure and human capacity development.
According to the president, the Chinese support to Nigeria has also impressively addressed significant challenges in the areas of power, transport, agriculture and humanitarian assistance.
“For Nigeria, our partnership with China through the FOCAC platform, has resulted in the construction of the first urban rail system in West Africa. This $500 million project in Abuja was commissioned in July this year”, the President indicated, citing also the construction and operation of the first rail system in Africa that used modern Chinese standards and technology.
“This 180-km rail line that connects Abuja and Kaduna was commissioned two years ago at a cost of $500 million.
“Today, the rail line is functioning efficiently with no issues – indeed, a sign that Chinese technology is world class,” he noted.
President Buhari said that, ”Nigeria is leveraging Chinese funding to execute $3.4 billion worth of projects at various stages of completion.
These he said include the upgrading of airport terminals, the Lagos – Kano rail line, the Zungeru hydroelectric power project and fibre cables for our internet infrastructure.
”Furthermore, less than 3 months ago, Nigeria signed an additional $1billion loan from China for additional rolling stock for the newly constructed rail lines as well as road rehabilitation and water supply projects”.
The Nigerian leader said that the aforementioned projects had demonstrated the high level of consistency and commitment China had shown in boosting its relations with African countries under the umbrella of FOCAC.
”I am optimistic that this Summit will offer new opportunities that would build on these past achievements.
”Nigeria will continue to support the FOCAC initiative and also seek to key into the Belt and Road Initiative. “
