Jonathan to ring the bell at New York Stock Exchange...

President Goodluck Jonathan will depart Abuja on Saturday for New York, United States today, where he is expected to ring the closing bell at the prestigious New York Stock Exchange on Monday.

This event, which is a major boost to the country's investment drive, will precede his  delivering Nigeria's statement to the 68th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, which will be broadcast live by the Nigerian Television Authority on Tuesday.

Jonathan is leading the Nigerian delegation that will participate in the 68th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, which is expected to focus on identifying parameters for the post-2015 global development agenda.

Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, said in a statement on Friday that Jonathan was expected to meet with President Barack Obama of the United States in New York, before joining other world leaders for high-level discussions on ways and means of building on the progress made thus far towards achieving the millennium development goals (MDGs) that were agreed in 2000.

The President and his delegation will participate in other high-level events focusing on women, youth and civil society, human rights and the rule of law, as well as the use of information communications technology for development.

Nigeria will also contribute to the thematic debates on the role of partnerships, how stable and peaceful societies can contribute to development, and the role of potable water, sanitation and sustainable energy in the post-2015 global development agenda.

Meanwhile, it has been estimated that there are over one million Nigerian-Americans living in the United States of America, with twice that number that have distinguished themselves in their various fields of learning.

Others are Ola Akinboboye, the New York based award-winning nuclear cardiologist who is also the leader of black cardiologists in the US and Professor Toyin Falola, by far among the most decorated Nigerian scholar in the US, who is a history teacher at the University of Texas, Houston and Chief Usua Amanam, the California-based Nigerian business owner who built the first private refinery in Nigeria as well as Ambassador Ibrahim Gambari, the New York based Nigerian diplomat who served the United Nations in some of the toughest diplomatic spots in the world, including Darfur.

The President and his delegation are expected to leave New York for Abuja on Wednesday.