President Sergio Mattarella of Italy to visit Cameroon

President Sergio Mattarella of Italy will visit Cameroon between the 16th and 20th of March 2016 after a stop in Ethiopia, Cameroon Concord has learned from diplomatic sources in Yaounde, the nation's capital. The Sergio Mattarella visit will be the first by an Italian president to Cameroon. Unlike the Cameroonian dictator Paul Biya, who has made several trips to Rome in Italy, including the Vatican the last of which dates back to April 2014, for the canonization of Popes John XXIII and John Paul II, the Italian chief executive's mission to Africa will be to convince African countries and members of the African Union (AU), to support the Italy's bid to the Security Council for 2017-2018. 

Italy announced its candidacy as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council. On Tuesday, January 7, 2014 in Dakar, the Senegalese and Italian governments signed a reciprocal agreement to support Italy's applications for non-permanent member of the UN Security Council. Cameroon is among the nations considered by the Italians as undecided. President Sergio Mattarella is expected to announce Italian support to refugees in Cameroon who are victims of Boko Haram atrocities.