Pres. Sirleaf Receives Brazilian Ambassador President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has received the Letters of Credence from the first Ambassador of the Federative Republic of Brazil to Liberia, His Excellency Mr. Adres Luis Azevedo Dos Santos. According to an Executive Mansion release, President Sirleaf, making remarks at a ceremony in her the Foreign Ministry Office, said both countries have enjoyed respected friendship for over 150 years when Brazil recognized the sovereignty of Liberia. Our two countries began to cooperate on more substantive fronts when we entered into a treaty of friendship and commerce since 1852, she recounted. The Liberian leader noted that more recently, in 2009, both countries signed a bilateral agreement on Technical Cooperation; under this arrangement, a series of meaningful initiatives have already been undertaken, particularly in providing training and scholarship opportunities for Liberians to help in strengthening the capacity of public administration and the agricultural sector, especially in capacitating local farmers to add value to their produce with cassava processing, as well as in fisheries and irrigation. We remain ever grateful to your country for the expansion training facilities to our people for various disciplines,including Basic Welding, Fashion and Beauty, Security and Monitoring of Maritime Traffic, and Search and Rescue operations,all of which becameoperational from September this year and are to last until 2014, President Sirleaf said. She expressed pleasure at receiving the first ever Brazilian Ambassador accredited to Liberia, and re-emphasized that preparations are under way for Liberia, in the very near future, to establish a physical diplomatic presence in Brazil and was counting on the Brazilian Governments support. We are aware of the leadership role Brazil continues to play on behalf of the Group of 77 and developing nations in trade negotiations and financial issues in international forums, she pointed out, and added, We are conscious of the policies of the Brazilian Government of forging strategic partnership between Brazil and Africa and for expanding and deepening relations with African countries. The Liberian leader recalled the first ever Official Visit by a Liberian Head of State to Brazil since the signing of the treaty of friendship, 158 years then, in 2010. She said that while there, her Government signed a number of Agreements and Memorandums of Understandings (MOUs), including an Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Education; an Agreement on the Performance of Remunerated Activities by Dependents of Diplomatic, Consular, Military, Administrative, and Technical Staff; MOUs on the Establishment of a Liberia-Brazil Joint Commission; Establishment of a Mechanism for Political Consultations, Cooperation in Sports; and on Cooperation in Energy and Mining. On behalf of her Government, the Liberian President expressed her deep appreciation for Brazils participation in the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) and the policies of social inclusion and poverty reduction from which Liberia can surely benefit. I am confident that our relations, which finds as its pivot shared moral values, justice for humanity, and the fundamental principle of equal opportunity and the respect for our sovereign inviolability, will continue to wax stronger during your tour of duty and that we can find new ways of solidifying our relations, she said. She also recognized Brazils role as an important member of the BRICS group of nations, and used the opportunity to reiterate her Governments desire for support in trade and industry, including the exploitation of minerals and forest resources, the development of agriculture and agribusiness, as well as in the education and tourism sectors. Continued President Sirleaf: We appreciate the role played by Brazil in hosting and providing leadership for the Sustainable Development Conference, the results of which are being incorporated into the Post-2015 Global Development Agenda. The President mentioned her Governments Agenda for Transformation (AfT), part of the larger national vision - Vision 2030 - which aims at making Liberia a middle-income country by 2030. She said that thanks to friendly governments such as Brazil and international partners, Liberia has established a participatory government and has crystallized its development priorities into strategic pillars. My Government strongly counts on the continued critical and strategic support to assist us to accomplish our targets, she said, while assuring Ambassador Dos Santos of her Governments support and continued commitment to providing all the necessary assistance he may need to ensure the success of his mission. For his part, H.E. Mr. Dos Santos said that although Brazil-Liberia relations date back over 150 years, this friendship has never been used as an instrument for the benefit of these countries. Fortunately, this situation has gradually begun to change, as those who follow our relations more closely have noticed, he said, adding that there are people who want to accelerate the pace of this change, as if to compensate for the lost years. He named the Brazilian President, Her Excellency Dilma Roussef, as one of these people. That is why Im here, he said, to assure that, to the best of their potential, the relations between Brazil and Liberia move forward at a faster pace, in the promotion of social inclusion and economic development. Ambassador Dos Santos said that in order to be successful during his tour, he would need some help, both from Brazil and his host, Liberia. He reiterated his governments request that Liberia considers the possibility of having a resident diplomatic representative in Brasilia in the near future. I cannot stress how much such a measure would be in the common interest of strengthening our relations at all levels, he said. The new Brazilian Ambassador to Liberia said he believes that both countries can work together in a very productive way in several fields; but his message was that above everything else, there is a political will to overcome the barriers and to get things done. Before his appointment as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Liberia on June 25, 2013, H.E. Dos Santos served as Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Brazil in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He also served as Deputy Consul General at the Consulate General of Brazil in Paris, France, and before that, as Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Brazil in Abuja, Nigeria.
Posted on: Tue, 19 Nov 2013 14:06:36 +0000
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