December 25, 2015
No. 293
Acting as the special envoy of ROC President Ma Ying-jeou, President Wu Jin-lin of the Examination Yuan and Mrs. Wu will travel on December 25 to Burkina Faso, a diplomatic ally in West Africa, for the inauguration ceremony of the newly elected president, Mr. Roch Marc Christian Kaboré. ROC Ambassador to Burkina Faso Shen Cheng-hong will accompany the five-member delegation during the trip.
In addition to participating in the inauguration ceremony and related activities, the delegation will have an audience with the new president. They will also visit various cooperation projects, such as a professional and vocational training center in Ziniaré, sites for the Upland Rice Promotion Project and Light for Africa project, and a national hospital in the capital. The delegation will return to Taiwan on January 1, 2016.
President-elect Kaboré, who visited Taiwan in 2005, boasts a rich political career. Before founding the Movement of People for Progress (MPP) party in January 2014, becoming its chairman, he served in a wide range of positions, including director general of the International Bank of Burkina, minister of transport and communications, minister of state for coordination of government action, minister of state for finance and planning, minister of state for relations with institutions, prime minister, as well as first vice president and president of the National Assembly.
On November 29, Burkina Faso held its presidential and parliamentary elections, in which Mr. Kaboré represented the MPP party, winning 53.46% of the vote in the first round. The presidential election ballot listed 14 candidates, with voter turnout reaching 60%.
Since the ROC and Burkina Faso resumed diplomatic relations in 1994, bilateral cooperation has yielded tangible fruits through well established mechanisms for related consultations. The two nations will continue to promote joint projects in the areas of vocational training, agriculture, medical care, sanitation, solar power, and photovoltaics. (E)