Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has been praised for his efforts in trying to bring peace in the country amid the Boko Haram insurgency.

United States President Barack Obama gave the praise yesterday while receiving the Buhari, who is visiting Washington to seek for US support in tackling the problems of terrorism and corruption plaguing Nigeria.

Obama noted that Buhari had “a very clear agenda in defeating Boko Haram and extremists

of all sorts inside his country. And he has a very clear agenda in terms of rooting out the

corruption that too often has held back the economic growth and prosperity of his country.”

Speaking to reporters at the start of the meeting, Obama expressed hope of a partnership between the US and Nigeria that would make Nigeria an anchor of “prosperity and stability” in Africa and a role model for other developing countries.

He informed that his county and Nigeria can jointly combat terrorism and how the US “can be helpful in addressing some of the corruption issues that have held Nigeria back.”

Buhari had told Obama during their talks that Nigeria would be forever grateful for America’s role in ensuring free and fair elections in Nigeria during the last presidential polls in which Buhari defeated incumbent Goodluck Jonathan.

He stressed that the pressure from The United States and Europe to ensure the election was “fair and credible led us to where we are now.”

•Photo shows Obama welcoming Buhari to his office . . . yesterday in Washington DC.