Abuja — The ECOWAS Commission on Tuesday, 6th March 2012 hosted its outgoing President, His Excellency James Victor Gbeho, to a farewell party which was attended by members of the diplomatic corps, representatives of development partners and staff members.
Speaking during the event held at the Commission's Abuja headquarters, new President, His Excellency Kadre Desire Ouedraogo who assumed office five days ago, described the outgoing President as "a man of honour, a man of duty and a man of experience." "His contribution to the integration efforts in West Africa is quite remarkable," President Ouedraogo said, adding: "ECOWAS is very grateful to him and his team."
On behalf of the Commission, he expressed gratitude to President Gbeho "for the numerous achievements realized under his able leadership." President Ouedraogo then wished Ambassador Gbeho well in his future endeavours and expressed the hope that "he will continue to put his talent and vast experience at the service of not only his country, Ghana, but the entire region of West Africa." He also used the opportunity to thank members of the diplomatic corps, their countries and development partners for their support, expressing the optimism that the support and cooperation with the Commission will continue.
The President expressed his "willingness to work with all of you to strengthen the close ties which exist between your countries and ECOWAS." In his response, President Gbeho expressed his profound gratitude to his successor and his new management team for the gesture, noting that he was happy to bequeath to them an ECOWAS that is relatively more peaceful and stable with a solid foundation for true economic integration. He alluded to the challenges faced by the region two years ago when he assumed office and how the Community was able to overcome them with determination, commitment and cooperation of his team, coupled with the strong support of regional leaders and development partners. President Gbeho acknowledged that his tasks were made easier by the strong leadership provided by the immediate-past Chair of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government, Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan.
He paid tribute to the Nigerian leader for bringing "his calmness and cool headedness" to bear in steering the affairs of the region, adding that this was an eloquent testimony to Nigeria's leadership role in West Africa and Africa as a whole. President Gbeho, a seasoned diplomat, philanthropist and former Foreign Minister of Ghana, joined the ECOWAS Commission in March 2010 to complete the unexpired tenure of his country. His achievements include the successful steering of the Commission's transformational agenda that started in 2007 and bringing vitality and new momentum to the irreversible process for the realization of the dream of the ECOWAS founding fathers through the new Vision 2020 for a people-centred regional integration.
Highlight of the farewell ceremony was the presentation of a gift to President Gbeho by the Commissioner for Finance and Administration, Mrs. Khadi Ramatu Saccoh, on behalf of the Commission. In his opening remarks earlier, Vice President of the Commission, Dr. Toga Mcintosh, presented the new President and new Commissioners to the guests.
The Commission's new management team comprises:
President Kadre Desire Ouedraogo Vice-President Toga Mcintosh
Commissioners:
Dr. Lapodini Marc Atouga - Agriculture, Environment and Water Resources
Mr. Hamid Ahmed - Trade, Customs, Industry, Mines and Free Movement
Amb. Ibrahim Ba - Macroeconomic Policy
Mr. Ebrima Njie - Infrastructure
Mrs. Khadi Ramatu Saccoh - Administration and Finance
Mrs. Salamatu Suleiman - Political Affairs, Peace and Security and,
Dr. Adrienne Diop - Human Development and Gender
