Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), June 07, 2021 (CEA) – The Under Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), Vera Songwe, will pay an official visit to Burkina Faso from June 06 to 07, 2021 at the invitation of the President of Faso, His Excellency Mr. Roch Marc Christian Kaboré.
This visit will strengthen the already fruitful cooperation between Burkina Faso and the ECA, particularly in support of its efforts in favour of structural transformation, the inclusive and sustainable development of Burkina Faso, access to appropriate funding for post-COVID reconstruction, regional integration and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
During her 48-hour stay, the Under Secretary-General of the United Nations will hold working meetings with the highest Burkinabè authorities including the President of Burkina Faso, H.E. Mr. Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, the Prime Minister of Burkina Faso, H.E. Mr. Christophe Joseph Marie Dabire and several members of the Government.
This first official visit of Vera Songwe to Burkina Faso as Executive Secretary of the ECA comes at the right time because the country has just started an important stage of regional integration by validating its national strategy for the implementation of the AfCFTA in April 2021, with the support of the ECA and the European Union.
The ECA, through its Sub-Regional Office for West Africa, has also provided support on several occasions to Burkina Faso for the deployment of an integrated tool for planning and the development a national strategy for public policy evaluation.
The ECA supports Burkina Faso for the establishment of an integrated national financial framework in order to strengthen the national capacity to mobilize resources (private and public). This will contribute to an effective implementation of the post COVID19 socio-economic reconstruction in line with the implementation of the national sustainable development strategy and the achievement of the 2030 and 2063 Agendas of the African Union.
Note to editors
The Sub-Regional Office for West Africa of the United Nations Economic Commission (SRO-WA/ECA) is based in Niamey, Niger.
It is headed by a Director who reports to the Executive Secretary.
It covers all 15 Member States of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS): Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.
The main objective of the Office is to contribute to the achievement of structural transformation for inclusive and sustainable development in West Africa, focusing on demographic dynamics for development.
Issued by:
Communications Section
Economic Commission for Africa
PO Box 3001
Addis Ababa
Ethiopia
Tel: +251 11 551 5826
E-mail: eca-info@un.org