After the embassies of Gabon and Togo, CAFRAD delegation, led by the new Director General of CAFRAD, Dr. Coffi Dieudonné ASSOUVI, continues their official embassies tour. They are received in an official audience on Tuesday, October 29 by His Excellency Mr. Nestor BANKUMUKUNZI, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Burundi, assisted by First Advisor Manirakira STANISLAS.

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: Mr. AZIZ BENDOUKALI, HEAD OF PROTOCOL OF CAFRAD, HIS EXCELLENCy Mr. NESTOR BANKUMUKUNZI, AMBASSADOR OF BURUNDI IN MOROCCO, DR. COFFI DIEUDONNE ASSOUVI, DIRECTOR GENERAL OF CAFRAD, AND MANIRAKIZA STANISLAS, FIRST ADVISOR TO THE EMBASSY OF BURUNDI IN MOROCCO

This visit is part of the diplomatic offensive of the new Director General with a view to remobilizing Member States and technical and financial partners of the Pan-African Intergovernmental Organization around CAFRAD’s new vision, in the service of global, digital and intelligent transformation of African public and private administrations. CAFRAD wants to seize the opportunity to express its gratitude to the Member States, to raise their awareness to the current issues of the Institute through the embassies visits, as well as showcase its ambition to become a legitimate center for training, research, documentation, publication and consulting on postmodern issues of public action in a context of porosity of the public and private sectors.

In addition, CAFRAD also proposed new avenues of collaboration, notably through assistance in seeking innovative financing for the creation of intelligent infrastructures, the implementation of digital and ecological transformation, or even the training of senior officers and magistrates of member states in an interdisciplinary and trans-disciplinary perspective on decision making.

His Excellency Mr. BANKUMUKUNZI congratulated the new Director General of CAFRAD for being able to breathe new life into this historic African institution. He also praised the in-depth reflection initiated by Dr. ASSOUVI following his taking office, which placed several strategic axes at the heart of the CAFRAD reform, including the project to reposition CAFRAD as the epicenter of dialogue to coordinate training in the ENA of African countries He especially insisted on the importance of working on the visibility of the Organization; its notoriety being a sine qua non condition to catch the interest of Member States to pay their contributions, and a factor of its credibility and its regional and international influence.

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: HIS EXCELLENCY NESTOR BANKUMUKUNZI, AMBASSADOR OF BURUNDI IN MOROCCO, AND DR. COFFI DIEUDONNE ASSOUVI, DIRECTOR GENERAL OF CAFRAD
Furthermore, His Excellency reassured the Director General that the Embassy of Burundi is ready to support CAFRAD in their projects, as well as in its request to pay contributions and explore cooperation opportunities.

In addition, His Excellency expressed keen interest in the two main activities that CAFRAD plans to carry out in the short and medium term, namely the round table of partners which will soon be announced in Rabat, as well as the 60th anniversary conference of CAFRAD. This event aims to tackle an in-depth, multidisciplinary and inclusive diagnosis of the impacts of CAFRAD’s activities on the modernization of African public and private administrations.

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: HIS EXCELLENCY NESTOR BANKUMUKUNZI, AMBASSADOR OF BURUNDI in MOROCCO, AND DR. COFFI DIEUDONNE ASSOUVI, DIRECTOR GENERAL OF CAFRAD

Ultimately, the working session, much appreciated by both parties, ended on a note of satisfaction and on an exchange of ideas for cooperation, including the proposal to allocate a CAFRAD office in the member states or the importance of collaborating with other organizations working in the region. CAFRAD wishes to rely on the support of Member States through their embassies for these ambitious projects.