The Prime Minister, Laurent Lamothe, at the head of a Haitian delegation of 13 personalities, arrived Wednesday evening (local 19:45 GMT) at the Felix Houphouet Boigny International Airport in Abidjan, for his first visit to Africa since his nomination. This visit initiated by Alassane Ouattara, President of Côte d'Ivoire, during a meeting with the Prime Minister on the sidelines of the London Olympics, follows the formal exchanges between President Michel Martelly and his counterpart Ivorian, during the fourteenth Francophonie Summit held in the Democratic Republic of Congo from 12 to 14 October 2012.

Upon his arrival, he was warmly welcomed by the Prime Minister Daniel Kablan Duncan, also Minister of Economy and Finance of Côte d'Ivoire.

"This visit of friendship and rapprochement in the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, which is a first in the history of relations between the two states, aims to encourage South-South cooperation [...] There are African blood which flows in the veins of the Haitian people [...] It is time that Haiti is closer to our African roots," declared the Prime Minister Lamothe, who said he was honored to tread the land of his ancestors.

Oswald Louéké, Honorary Consul of Haiti in Côte d'Ivoire, organized a dinner in honor of Prime Minister Lamothe at Restaurant "le toit d'Abidjan" at the Sofitel.

Thursday morning, Laurent Lamothe, accompanied by including Pierre Richard Casimir, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Fresner Dorcin, Secretary Of State for crop production, participated in a breakfast meeting organized by the Centre of Investment Promotion in Côte d'Ivoire (CEPIC), with businessmen Ivorians, in which the Prime Minister gave a speech on business opportunities in Haiti. Pierre Richard Casimir also spoke as well as Fresner Dorcin, who presented the agricultural opportunities in Haiti.

After this breakfast, the Prime Minister went to the Ivorian Primature where he had a private meeting with his Ivorian counterpart Daniel Kablan Duncan, before attending a working session chaired by two Heads of Government in the room the primature with the Ministers of the Interior and Security, Foreign Affairs, Economy and Finance, Education, Animal Resources and fishery, of the Agriculture, Culture and Francophonie, during which several agreements of cooperation and opf technical assistance should be signed between the two countries, particularly in the areas of education, agribusiness, security, tax reform and the management port.

Côte d'Ivoire is the largest producer of cocoa and the Head of Government of Haiti, wants to reconnect with the past of Haiti, which exported in large quantities during the twentieth century in this sense, Laurent Lamothe will visit in the afternoon, a cocoa processing unit.

In the evening, the Prime Minister will attend a dinner hosted in his honor by the Ivorian authorities.

On the morning of Friday, the Prime Minister will visit the Autonomous Port of Abidjan, before going in the tourist town and the Craft Centre of "Grand-Bassam". Shortly before his departure, he will meet with the Honorary Consulate in Cocody-Ambassade (Abidjan-East), the Haitian community living in Côte d'Ivoire, estimated at about 200 people, many of whom are officials of UNOCI.

See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-8201-haiti-politic-several-cooperation-agreements-should-be-signed-in-cote-d-ivoire.html

HL/ HaitiLibre