Special envoy of PM Abe attends Presidential Inauguration Ceremony in Senegal

From 1 to 3 April, Hon. Seigo Kitamura, a member of the House of Representatives and the Vice-Chairman of the Japan-African Union (AU) Parliamentary Friendship League, made a visit to the Republic of Senegal, as Special Envoy of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, to attend the Presidential Inauguration Ceremony for H.E. Mr. Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal.

On April 2, Hon. Kitamura attended the Presidential Inauguration Ceremony held in Dakar, Senegal. At the ceremony, President Macky Sall took the oath and made his inauguration speech in front of foreign dignitaries including heads of state from African countries, major political and economic actors, and representatives from civil society. Hon. Kitamura also attended in the luncheon hosted by the President and had conversations with the Presidents of Cabo Verde, the Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Madagascar, among others.

Hon. Kitamura paid a courtesy call on President Macky Sall on April 1, a day before the ceremony, to convey a message of congratulations from His Majesty the Emperor of Japan and to hand over a personal letter from Prime Minister Abe. At the courtesy call, Hon. Kitamura stated that Japan hopes to further strengthen the bilateral relationship and extended the invitation to the President for the G20 Osaka Summit to be held in June as well as the TICAD7 to be held in Yokohama in August. President Sall welcomed the visit of the Special Envoy and expressed his appreciation for the message from His Majesty as well as the personal letter from the Prime Minister. The President stated that he would continue the efforts to reinforce the bilateral relations and then expressed his willingness to attend the G20 Osaka Summit and TICAD7.

During the stay in Senegal, Hon. Kitamura also had meetings and exchanged greetings with government dignitaries, including H.E.Mr. Abdoulaye Diouf Sarr, Minister of Health and Social Action, and H.E.Mr. Mary Teuw Niane, Minister of Higher Education, Research and Innovation.

In addition, Hon. Kitamura met with representatives of the Japanese community in Senegal and visited Japan's ODA project sites.

(With Inputs from APO)