Nigeria's Obasanjo to retire to farm

Nigeria's outgoing President, Olusegun Obasanjo, says he will return to his multi-million dollar farm in his home state when he stands down on May 29 after eight years as president. He is to hand over government to Umaru Yar'Adua at a ceremony in the capital, Abuja.

"I'm going back to my farm, but I am getting old and so I will not be able to run the farm hands-on," he said. His Ota Farm occupies a vast expanse of land in the town of Ota in Ogun State in south-western Nigeria. "There are people in the international arena who are calling me for this and calling me for that. I cannot accept everything. I will accept a few."

He says he is also looking forward to his new role as the chairman of the governing party's board of trustees, a position that will ensure that he remains influential in the affairs of Nigeria. "And then I have a library which I am developing. We haven't had anything like that in Nigeria, or indeed in Africa. So, I'll pay a bit of attention to that," he said on state-owned national television.

Obasanjo also said he was looking forward to working with UK Prime Minster Tony Blair and South African leader Thabo Mbeki on a new body designed to help African countries attain economic prosperity.

BBC