LABOR SECRETARY CHAO LEADS PRESIDENTIAL DELEGATION TO

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DAKAR 000823 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR AF/W, AF/RSA, DRL/IL, INR/AA AND S/CPR LABOR FOR OSEC - BALMER NSC FOR AF SENIOR DIRECTOR PITTMAN AID/W FOR AFR/WA AND AFR/SD PARIS FOR POL - D'ELIA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL OVIP ELAB EAIR PGOV KMCA SG SUBJECT: LABOR SECRETARY CHAO LEADS PRESIDENTIAL DELEGATION TO PRESIDENT WADE'S INAUGURATION DAKAR 00000823 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. SUMMARY: Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao led the presidential delegation to the second inauguration of Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade, as well as the 47th anniversary celebration of Senegal's independence from France and related events. During the April 3-5 festivities, Senegal hosted approximately 50 foreign delegations. Each of the 15 members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) sent a delegation, and many delegations came from much further afield. In all, at least 20 heads of state and three heads of government attended. They heard President Wade present his vision for Senegal and Africa's development, and they also heard Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi rail against colonialism. Secretary Chao's visit included a brief bilateral meeting with SIPDIS Qadhafi. END SUMMARY. ¶2. Senegal's Minister of Labor, Civil Service and Professional Organizations, Abdoulaye Babou, greeted Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao, in her capacity as head of the U.S. Presidential Delegation, upon her arrival in Senegal on April 3. Other members of the official delegation included Ambassador Jacobs; the Honorable Louis Sullivan, former Secretary of Health and Human Services and President Emeritus of Morehouse College School of Medicine; the Honorable Bobby Pittman, Jr., Counselor to the President and Senior Director for African Affairs at the National Security Council; and Rear Admiral R. Timothy Ziemer, USN, Retired, Coordinator of the President's Malaria Initiative. PRESIDENT WADE'S INAUGURATION -------------- ¶3. On April 3, Secretary Chao joined approximately 25 heads of state and 25 other heads of delegation for the inauguration ceremony ("Prestation du Serment") of President Abdoulaye Wade following his February 25 reelection. The Heads of State included the Presidents of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Chad, Comoros, Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Namibia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo. The heads of government included the Prime Ministers of Ethiopia, Guinea and Morocco. The Vice President of the French Senate was the most senior European; China sent Han Qide, the Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress; The Gambia sent its Vice President; and Laurent Dona-Fologo represented Cote d'Ivoire. ¶4. In his inaugural address, President Wade stressed the need to build a "changed" Senegal. He thanked God, religious leaders, youth and women for his February 25 victory. Underscoring that "Sopi" (change) is "on the march," he highlighted that the Government is devoting 40 percent of the budget to education and 10 percent to health. He discussed a number of infrastructure projects, including the proposed Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) industrial platform at Diamniadio, the new Blaise Diagne International Airport, a new capital, new port facilities, and iron and phosphate projects. ¶5. Immediately after Wade's address, Secretary Chao, as one of five invited speakers, delivered the congratulatory message from President Bush to the 80,000-plus crowd gathered for the event at Dakar's Leopold Sedar Senghor (LSS) Stadium. The other speakers, in order, were the President of France's Senate, Burkinabe President Blaise Campaore as ECOWAS Chairman, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, and Ghanaian President John Kufuor as President of the African Union. Their remarks focused on democracy, good governance and African unity. ¶6. After the ceremonies at the Stadium, Secretary Chao and Ambassador Jacobs attended a high-level reception at the Presidential Palace where Secretary Chao personally delivered congratulations to President Wade on behalf of President Bush and met other heads of delegation. INDEPENDENCE DAY -------------- ¶7. That evening, President Wade's independence day message aired on national television. Taking pride in the presidential election, he called for an equally large turnout for the June 3 legislative elections, which 12 opposition parties, including Rewmi, the Socialist Party, and the Alliance of Progressive Forces (AFP),have decided to boycott. In keeping with the theme of the April 4 parade, "women and national defense," Wade devoted much of the address to veterans, women and youth, again stressing education, infrastructure and employment. Wade promised to hold a presidential DAKAR 00000823 002.2 OF 002 council on people with disabilities. (NOTE: In 2006, Wade held two presidential councils - one on the MCA project and one on street children. END NOTE.) A PARADE, LUNCH WITH THE FIRST LADY, AND A CHAT WITH QADHAFI -------------- -------------- ¶8. On April 4, Secretary Chao joined President Wade, heads of state and other heads of delegation to review the parade celebrating the 47th anniversary of Senegal's independence. At the conclusion, President Wade praised the 393 civilians and 3,451 military personnel, gendarmes, police, firemen, customs agents, health professionals, and forestry service professionals who participated, with 14 aircraft, 187 vehicles, 44 motorcycles and 127 horses. As the guest of honor at the parade, Qadhafi delivered an anti-colonialism diatribe that was virtually identical to his speech a year earlier. ¶9. After the parade, Secretary Chao joined a select group of heads of state and heads of delegation at a luncheon hosted by President Wade at his personal "beach house" near Popenguine, approximately 80 kilometers from Dakar where Secretary Chao presented the White House gift to President Wade. At this event, Secretary Chao dined with Mrs. Wade, her daughter Sindiely Wade, and Ms. Denise Etote Duran, Director for Africa for France's "TV5 Monde." After the lunch, Secretary Chao held a brief private meeting with Libyan leader SIPDIS Qadhafi; notetakers were not permitted at this event. Secretary Chao departed Popenguine directly for Dakar's LSS International Airport for an 18:35 "wheels up." BLAISE DIAGNE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT -------------- ¶10. DCM represented the USG at the groundbreaking for the new Blaise Diagne International Airport (BDIA) at Diass, which is approximately 50 kilometers from Dakar, between Diamniadio and Popenguine. The new airport which is being financed largely through taxes on airline tickets is destined to open in 33 months with a capacity for 3 million passengers per year -- almost twice what Dakar's LLS International Airport is currently handling and six times the capacity for which LSS Airport was built. The USD 460 million project has been awarded to Saudi Arabia's Bin Laden Group, which will construct the airport, and Germany's Fraport, which will run BDIA. The biggest issue for BDIA, however, may be that the toll road from Dakar to Diass is unlikely to be completed within 33 months, making travel between BDIA and Dakar difficult. ¶11. Secretary Chao did not have the opportunity to clear this message prior to her departure. ¶12. Tripoli minimize considered. Jackson