Simon Ateba is Chief White House Correspondent for Today News Africa. Simon covers President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, the U.S. government, the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and other financial and international institutions in Washington D.C. and New York City.
President Muhammadu Buhari has described the death of Saudi Arabian Ambassador to Nigeria, Adnan Mahmoud, as ” a great loss of a passionate friend of Nigeria and a fine diplomat who identified himself with the progress and development of our country.”
“The late Adnan Mahmoud was one of the finest diplomats I have ever met and his humility was one of his endearing virtues,” President Buhari said in a condolence message.
According to the President, “the late Saudi Arabian Ambassador had dedicated himself sincerely to promoting constructive and beneficial relationship between Nigeria and his country, and we cannot therefore forget his remarkable achievements in forging closer ties between the two countries.”
“Surely, Nigeria will have fond and enduring memories of Adnan Mahmoud who, to the best of my recollection, was one of the greatest diplomats ever posted to Nigeria. He had worked assiduously for the progress and development of Nigeria and would never forget these significant contributions. May Allah bless and forgive his gentle soul”, Buhari further noted.
“On behalf of my family, the government and people of Nigeria, I convey my condolences to the His Majesty, King Salman, the government and of the Royal Kingdom of Saudi over this irreparable loss,” said the President.
According to Arab News, Adnan bin Mahmoud Bostaji received his bachelor’s degree in social sciences in 1985 from King Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah and higher diploma in diplomatic studies in 1988 from the Diplomatic Studies Institute in Riyadh.
Recently, Bostaji met with the president of the Aisha Buhari Foundation, Aisha Buhari. They discussed ways to enhance cooperation through the Kingdom’s humanitarian work, as well as the foundation’s aid through its program “Future Assured.”
Bukhari praised the assistance provided by the government of King Salman for refugees in northeastern Nigeria and stressed the strong historical relations between the countries.
The Saudi ambassador started his career by joining the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Later, he was appointed deputy to the ambassador at the Saudi Embassy in Tehran from 1991 until 1998.
The newspaper said in 2000, he was appointed as chargé d’affaires at the Saudi Embassy in Copenhagen, Denmark, until 2003.
“He then worked as head of economic affairs and international organizations at the Saudi Embassy in London from 2003 until 2005. He also joined the office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Makkah as director from 2003 until 2016.
“Before his appointment as a Saudi ambassador to Nigeria, Bostaji served as deputy to the ambassador at the Saudi Embassy in Berlin in 2016,” the widely read publication said.
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