Talks on containing the Boko Haram insurgency have become more concretised as President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday accepted an invitation from President Paul Biya to visit Cameroon.

The intensification of cooperation between Nigeria and neighbouring countries in the war against terrorism is contained in a statement by Mr Femi Adesina, the special adviser to the president on media and publicity, in Abuja.

The statement said the invitation was delivered to the president by Mr Sadi Rene Emmanuel, the Cameroonian Minister of Territorial Administration and Decentralisation. It said Buhari had agreed to visit Cameroon for the high-level talks soon after the end of the Ramadan fast.

President Buhari had re-emphasised the need for greater regional and international cooperation in fighting Boko Haram insurgents. The President praised the efforts of all regional governments, including Cameroon, to support Nigeria in the war against Boko Haram, but called for even greater collaboration.

“I am happy that the President has sent you. As you must have observed, I was in Niger and Chad over this issue. I planned to be in Cameroon afterwards, but I received an invitation to attend the Group of Seven (G7) meeting in Germany.

“I had to attend the meeting because Boko Haram has been internationalised and it was part of the discussions there,” he told Mr Emmanuel.

The Special Envoy had assured Buhari of President Biya’s “fraternity, sympathy and brotherly commitment” to working with Nigeria to end the Boko Haram insurgency. “Together, we will reinforce our efforts, eradicate the scourge of terrorism and look forward to better things,” Emmanuel said.