Brussels, 16 October 2012/ ACP: The Republic of Gabon is on due course to achieving socio-economic success, assured President Ali Bongo Ondimba on Tuesday while briefing the ACP Committee of Ambassadors on the nation’s 15-year Strategic Plan for an Emerging Gabon (SPEG).
 

“I have often said that I have a key conviction: that Gabon can, by reason of her skills and her resources, transform - in a single generation - the standards and quality of life of all her citizens. This is not merely a conjecture, but a firm and steadfast commitment,” said the Head of State.
 

During a special visit to the headquarters of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group in Brussels, President Obdimba underlined his ambitions for the West African nation, which he said faces a “paradox” of having Middle Income Country status but still struggling with some socio-economic challenges seen in Least Developed Countries.
 

He said it was “imperative” to change the structure of governance and economy in order to tackle basic needs of health, food security, housing and infrastructural development. In the process, the President appealed for support.
 

“For this vision to materialise, Gabon needs the support of its friends, notably the ACP Group and the European Union, with whom we hold longstanding cooperation, underpinned by the Yaoundé, Lomé and Cotonou Agreements,” he told Ambassadors, highlighting ACP’s role in giving a voice to member countries amongst the international community in Brussels.
 

Outlining three strategic focuses for the SPEG 2025, the first is to develop Gabon’s key factors for competitiveness in sustainable development, good governance, human capital and infrastructure. Secondly, the economy must move from a cash economy mainly based on raw materials, towards one based on added value and diversification. The third focus is on generating benefits for Gabonese citizens through quality public services, universal access to water, decent housing for all, and access to employment.
 

The Strategic Plan was set into action in 2011, with programmes rolling out until 2025. 

(Photo: The Chair-in-Office of the ACP Committee of Ambassadors H.E Daniel Evina Abe'e; the President of the Republic of Gabon H.E Ali Bongo Ondimba; the ACP Secretary General H.E Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas and the Dean of the ACP Committee of Ambassadors, H.E Felix Kodgo Sagbo at the ACP House in Brussels.)

- ACP Press