CAPE V - The 5th African Petroleum Congress & Exhibition 26 – 28 March 2013, Libreville, Gabon

Sponsored by some of the biggest names working in the African oil and gas sector, CAPE V will feature a three-day conference which will be held in parallel with an oil and gas industry trade event. The fifth edition of this increasingly popular event is organized by the Association of African Petroleum Producers (APPA), the Ministry of Petroleum, Energy and Hydraulic Resources, the Gabonese Republic and AME Trade Ltd.

ARMP (Public Procurement Regulatory Agency)

Gabon has recently set up a Public Procurement Regulatory Agency (ARMP) in charge of overseeing the public procurement system, developing training for the sector and penalizing irregularities. This is a strong decision for a healthy and diversified economy taken as the IMF concluded its consultation with Gabon on several positive notes. http://en.gabonews.com/economy/items/robust-economic-outlook-in-a-healthier-environment.html

Leader of the CEMAC region

Gabon received the most positive assessment in the CEMAC (Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa) region from the French group Coface, with a B rating for country risk and a C for business environment.

Obame makes sporting history

Anthony Obame made history for his country by scooping a silver medal in the men's heavyweight taekwondo competition at the 2012 Games in London – Gabon's first medal in nine Olympic appearances.

Gabon at the Olympic Games

The delegation from Gabon includes 23 athletes from five different sports : athletics (1), judo (1), taekwondo (1), boxing (2) and football (18) - the largest delegation the country has sent to any of the Olympic Games it has taken part in.

During the Olympic Games, at the Gabon House in the African Olympic village in Hyde Park (free access from July 27 to August 12) you can learn more about Gabon and its book "Gabon's Experience".

Gabon, General Debate - 3rd Plenary Meeting, Rio+20

During the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD), Rio +20, His Excellency Ali Bongo Ondimba, President of the Gabonese Republic, talked about Gabon's vision for sustainable development. The Emerging Gabon policy and its approach to sustainable development exists independently of the Rio Summit, but aligns perfectly with it. Sustainable development presents challenges of which Gabon has long been aware, particularly since 1992. Twenty years later, Rio provides the opportunity to express the continuity and coherence of Gabon's historic position on the environment and development. For more information, please watch his speech at: http://webtv.un.org/meetings-events/conferencessummits/rio20-13-22-june-2012-rio-de-janeiro-brazil/plenary-meetings/watch/gabon-general-debate-3rd-plenary-meeting-rio20/1700806415001

President Ali Bongo Ondimba visits the UK

President Ali Bongo Ondimba completed a three-day official visit to the UK during which he met with his British counterpart, Prime Minister David Cameron. During his thrid stay in London since he came to power in 2009 he presented his Emerging Gabon policy to investors and promoted his development vision for Africa. The Gabonese Head of State also delivered a speech entitled "Investing for the Future" before an audience of researchers and businessmen at Chatham House, the most prestigious and influential British think-tank on international relations. For more information: http://www.en.legabon.org/index.php?m=2&s=0&a=82

United Nations, New York, May 2012:

African elephants are increasingly targeted by global criminal trafficking networks, with illegal poaching and ivory trafficking reaching peak levels last year. But one man remains committed to saving these vulnerable creatures. For more details, watch from the United Nations Webcast, Gabon: The Elephant man http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDgl4Qr6uFg

New York Forum AFRICA

Richard Attias announced the New York Forum AFRICA to the press, an action-orientated forum created for Africa by Africa.

The event is an initiative of President Ali Bongo Ondimba in partnership with the Omar Bongo Ondimba Foundation. It will take place from 8th to 10th June in Libreville. It is set to be the largest gathering of 2012, bringing together around 600 economic decision makers, young entrepreneurs, policy makers, economists, leading experts, noble prize winners and leaders interested in Africa. This forum has a clear purpose: to provide an action-orientated platform on which the public sector and the private sector can work together.
www.ny-forum-africa.com

The place and role of African women will also be actively discussed. On 11th June, the day after the New York Forum AFRICA, the Cecilia Attias Foundation for Women will host theDialogue for Action, a meeting dedicated exclusively to women. This meeting will act as a platform for discussions about issues affecting women in Africa and the possible ways of improving their lives.
www.ceciliaattiasfoundation.org

President Ali Bongo Ondimba appoints a new Prime Minister, Raymond Ndong Sima

Gabon's President has appointed the agricultural minister as the country's new Prime Minister. Sima replaces Paul Mba Biyoghe. A former director at the state transportation ministry, Sima also has an extensive private sector background. Presidential adviser Igor Simard said the Prime Minister will play a key role in implementing President Bongo's Emerging Gabon initiative, which he said is to transform and diversify the country's economy.

"The new Prime Minister will help the country move forward in all the reforms President Bongo launched since he was elected in 2009," said Simard. "The President chose him because he has a dual background in government, as well as in the private sector." By naming Dong Sima, from Woleu-Ntem in northern Gabon, President Bongo is sending a strong message to all Gabonese. It is the first time that a Prime Minister has been appointed from this region. "This is a very big, positive message that the President is sending to all Gabonese people telling them that everybody can aspire to great heights."

The Panthers make Gabon proud

The Panthers make Gabon proud at the African Cup of Nations, which the country co-hosted for the first time with Equatorial Guinea. We congratulate Zambia on its magnificent victory!

The largest Special Economic Zone in Central and West Africa was opened in Libreville on September 9.

The Special Economic Zone of Nkok, located 30 km from Libreville, is the result of a partnership signed in 2010 between Olam International and the Government of Gabon, with an investment of $200 million. Covering over 1000 hectares, it will be mainly dedicated to the timber processing industry, with a processing capacity of one million cubic meters of wood per year, and is expected to attract nearly one billion dollars worth of investment. Reinforcing the ban on log exports that took effect in January 2010, the Special Economic Zone in Nkok is one of the manifestations of the Gabon Vert ("Green Gabon") and Gabon Industriel ("Industrial Gabon") policies, pillars of social project Gabon Emergent ("Emerging Gabon"). The zone allows for the creation of a real wood-processing industry and for local processing of raw materials in Gabon. Gabon will therefore be able to create and export products with high added value through innovative and advanced industry. Unique in West and Central Africa, the NKOK zone will be a major site of wood transformation in the sub-region.

For more information about the Special Economic Zone of Nkok, please visit: www.gabonadvance.com

Gabon loves nature

To share Gabon's exceptional biodiversity and highlight the splendid work accomplished over the past ten years by hundreds of Gabonese and international scientists in every domain of sustainable development and adaptation to climate change, the government launched a virtual tour of Gabon's national parks: Gabon, designed by nature available on www.gabon-nature.com