These memorandums of understanding were signed during a 72-hour state visit by the President of the Republic of Congo, Denis Sassou Nguesso, to Cote d’Ivoire, at the invitation of his Ivorian counterpart, Alassane Ouattara.
They were signed this Monday, June 12, 2023, at the Palace of the Presidency of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, in Abidjan-Plateau, by the various stakeholders, in the presence of the two heads of state, Alassane Ouattara and Denis Sassou Nguesso.
President Denis Sassou Nguesso, who arrived at Abidjan airport at 2pm, held talks with Alassane Ouattara at the Presidential Palace. The meeting ended on Monday with the signing of 13 bilateral agreements.
President Alassane Ouattara stressed the need to further strengthen and diversify the excellent cooperation relations between Cote d’Ivoire and the Republic of Congo. He praised the convergence of views between the two countries on regional and international issues.
For his part, President Sassou Nguesso praised Cote d’Ivoire’s economic performance, in particular “Cote d’Ivoire’s successful experience in agricultural development.”
Cooperation agreements
Thirteen bilateral agreements were signed between the two countries. The first agreement, a framework cooperation agreement, defines the general framework for cooperation between the parties, with a view to
strengthening their bilateral cooperation while respecting the sovereign freedoms of each State.
The second agreement concerns visa exemption for holders of diplomatic or service passports. The third agreement updates technical cooperation in the agricultural field, while the 4th deals with the fight against crime.
The 5th agreement covers cooperation in civil service and administrative modernization. The 6th protocol concerns maritime transport, in particular merchant shipping, and aims to develop the maritime industry.
The 7th protocol covers real estate development. The 8th aims to promote SMEs, share technologies and foster public-private partnerships. The 9th memorandum of understanding concerns the promotion of handicrafts.
The 10th protocol concerns technical cooperation in livestock breeding and production. The 11th agreement defines a general framework for cooperation on leisure activities. The 12th memorandum of understanding is between the oil companies Petroci of Cote d’Ivoire and Societe nationale des petroles du Congo (SNPC).
The 13th cooperation agreement links the Port Autonome d’Abidjan and the Port Autonome de Pointe Noire. The agreement also defines a cooperation framework to boost trade between the two countries.
African mediation mission to Moscow and Kiev
Presidents Cyril Ramaphosa, Denis Sassou Nguesso and six other heads of state from the African continent are expected in mid-June 2023, for a peace mission to Moscow and Kiev to try to bring Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky closer together.
“In Africa, when elephants fight, the little grasses are trampled on to die. Africa represents the grasses, and we are dying because of the battles of the giants,” Sassou Nguesso illustrated.
For him, “faced with such a tragedy, Africa could not remain silent and indifferent.” In the same vein, Senegalese President Macky Sall met Vladimir Putin in Moscow in June 2022 to share the African Union’s vision, and called for dialogue between the warring parties.
Africa, he said, calls on Moscow and Kiev to favor dialogue and diplomacy over guns. A head of state from each region of the continent and the current Chairman of the African Union will shortly be visiting Ukraine and Russia “to carry the continent’s message of peace and
appeasement.”
AP/fss/abj/APA