BURKINA FASO: PRESIDENTIAL FAREWELL WITH AMBASSADOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L OUAGADOUGOU 000135 NOFORN E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/02/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER UV SUBJECT: BURKINA FASO: PRESIDENTIAL FAREWELL WITH AMBASSADOR Classified By: Classified by Ambassador Jeanine Jackson, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (C/NF) During a relaxed, forty-minute farewell call with Ambassador Jackson, President Campaore covered a range of international and domestic issues. He presented an image of an elder statesman supporting democratization in Mauritania, while promoting peace and stability in Darfur and the Sahel. On the domestic front, he stressed his interest in democratization through programs of good governance, economic development and decentralization. While it remains unclear how much the President has truly taken ownership of these ideas, he certainly understands the themes that resonate with the United States and other international actors. End Summary. -------------- Focus on International Affairs -------------- ¶2. (C) Ambassador Jackson paid a farewell call on President Blaise Compaore February 24th. During a forty-minute, cordial meeting, the President praised the Ambassador for her work during the past three years and more generally expressed his satisfaction with the state of bilateral relations. He also used the occasion to reconfirm that he had given his personal approval to host the international military exercise Flintlock in Burkina Faso in April-May 2010. ¶3. (C) Turning to regional issues, Compaore indicated a certain amount of optimism about the recent Darfur peace negotiations in Doha. He said that the Burkinab mediator, Djibril Basole, was using an approach that brings together the government of Sudan with the major rebel groups to begin discussions. Once there is progress in these talks, Compaore said, other rebel groups and civil society more generally would join the process. He did wonder aloud how the March 4 indictment of Sudanese President Bashir would affect the process, but did not make a strong pitch on the issue. Ambassador Jackson urged that Burkina Faso's Ambassador to the United Nations work closely with Ambassador Rice on questions relating to Darfur. ¶4. (C) On Mauritania, Compaore stressed that pushing the junta to hold credible elections would be important but difficult. The key issues, he claimed, were to have an independent election commission and to ensure that the military leaders did not run for office, at least not as long as they remained in the military. He expressed a certain amount of pessimism on this subject, saying that he was not at all sure there would be credible elections. It would be important for the international players, he said, to point out the negative consequences for Mauritania should the elections not be handled properly. ¶5. (C) In something of a new twist, Compaore raised concerns about regional security in the Sahel region. He said that he was worried that "Salafists" had "installed themselves" in Northern Mali. Specifically he said that he was concerned because they had seized hostages and that there might be further instability stemming from these activities. Without providing further details, he indicated that Burkina Faso would soon be approaching the US with certain concrete proposals on how to combat instability in the Sahel region. -------------- Domestic Concerns -------------- ¶6. (C) As the conversation turned to domestic issues, Ambassador Jackson pointed out that while there had indeed been progress, more needs to be done in the area of democratization. The President agreed, and said that it will be particularly important to continue strengthening institutions, particularly the judiciary, and also to increase good governance. It would be particularly important to move ahead with land reform, he said, but it will also be quite difficult. On the positive side, the traditional chiefs' historical control over the land had been broken some years ago, he argued, but it would still take a concerted effort to carry through the program. (Note: land tenure reform is a significant cmponent of the Millennium Challenge Corporation' compact with Burkina Faso.) ¶7. (C) Land refom is particularly important to Burkina Faso, ccording to Compaore, because it will help slow down the process of urbanization. He pointed out that the country is less urbanized than many in the region, and that as Ouagadougou has only about 10 percent of Burkina Faso's population, which he compared to the almost 40 percent that Dakar represents in Senegal. In order to keep urbanization under control, he said, will take decentralization and economic development in rural areas. In particular he stressed the need to build schools and provide other social services in order to keep people out of the cities. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶8. (C/NF) Compaore clearly knows what resonates with the United States and other international donors. Internationally, it is to push for constitutional government, elections and peace building, while on the domestic front it includes democratization, good governance, institution building and land reform. It is unclear how much he has truly taken ownership of these issues, but he is at ease discussing them and certainly gives the impression that he is fully convinced that the future belongs to democratic governments that have the support of the international community and especially the United States. JACKSON