Cote d’Ivoire must be present on the sea with its own naval company, like the national airline Air Cote d’Ivoire for air transport, said Philippe Legre, the State secretary to the Minister of Transport in charge of maritime affairs.
“With all these opportunities for economic development related to the sea, our country whose growth is a little over 8 percent must be present on the sea. Cote d’Ivoire must be present through a naval company of its own,” Mr. Legre said on Monday during the celebration of the 2019 edition of the World Maritime Day around the theme, “Empowering Women in the Maritime Community.”
“Like the national airline Air Cote d’Ivoire, our beautiful country must equip itself with a national fleet of ships flying the Ivorian flag to succeed,” in particular the defunct Ivorian Society of Maritime Navigation (SIVOMAR), he added.
For Philippe Legre, the “sovereignty of Cote d’Ivoire and its position on the international scene could only be strengthened” with a new naval company.
Representing Dominique Ouattara, the First Lady of Cote d’Ivoire and patron of this celebration, the Minister of Women, Family and Children, Pr. Ramata Ly-Bakayoko hailed the theme centered on women’s empowerment in the community maritime. “All changes are difficult,” she said, urging women “not to abdicate.”
“You have to rely on women (…) We do not want favors, we have skills and we want to make room for us,” the minister told policy makers.
Earlier, the Director General of Maritime and Port Affairs (DGAMP), Colonel Major Bertin Koffi Tano and the Regional Coordinator of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), Colonel Honorat Hoba, noted the “special character” of the celebration of this 2019 edition coincides with the creation of a State Secretariat dedicated to maritime affairs.
“Mixed teams are more productive than men’s teams. Let’s make 2019 the year of action (…) break down all barriers,” Colonel Hoba said, referring to the theme, “Empowering Women in the Maritime Community.”
LS/fss/APA