Macron arrived in Libreville on the first leg of his African tour

It is the first time a French president has visited Gabon since Nicolas Sarkozy’s visit in 2010.

Via Le Figaro with AFP

Published On 03/01/2023 at 22:00Upgrade 03/02/2023 at 07:08

French President Emmanuel Macron It arrived in Libreville on Wednesday evening, the first leg of an African tour in Paris’ opinion to open a new era in relations between France and the continent.

Emmanuel Macron landed at 7:30pm (6:30pm Paris time). Capital of GabonThe AFP journalist noted that he immediately directed the president to dinner with his rival, Ali Bongo Ondimba.

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The French leader will attend a summit on the conservation of Congo Basin forests, co-organized by France and Gabon, on Thursday, in front of a dozen heads of state and government from the region.

Emmanuel Macron is making his eighteenth trip to Africa since his first five-year term began in 2017. It was the first visit by a French president to Gabon since Nicolas Sarkozy (2007-2012) in 2010. The French government will then travel to Angola, Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo until Saturday evening before returning to Paris on Sunday morning.

He begins this tour of Central Africa two days after he laid out his African strategy for the next four years in Paris, against the background of growing hatred against France.Square lawnAfrican.

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Emmanuel Macron argued on Monday that “Humility“, the impending reduction of the French military presence in Africa and calls for a new partnership”Balance“and”Responsiblewith continental countries. At the Gabonese presidency, he will give Ali Bongo on Wednesday evening a copy of the ethnographic fund of 900 sound sequences recorded in Gabon between 1954 – that is, before independence – and 1970.

This collection – the original collection housed at the Museum of Arts and Traditions of Gabon – illustrates all aspects of Gabon’s oral and musical heritage, from songs and stories to liturgical ceremonies. It comes from the work of French lyricist Herbert Peper and ethnomusicologist Pierre Salle, who composed the anthem of Senegal.