Visit to Canada of Her Excellency Rose Francine Rogombé, Speaker of the Senate of the Gabonese Republic, and a Parliamentary Delegation

From October 31 to November 5, 2011, Her Excellency Rose Francine Rogombé , Speaker of the Senate of the Gabonese Republic, led a parliamentary delegation to Ottawa, Quebec City, Trois-Rivières and Montreal at the invitation of the Honourable Noël A. Kinsella, Speaker of the Senate. The delegation was composed of Senators Martine Bondo, Adrien Mbumbe King, Charles René Mba and Georgette Koko; Mr. Félix Owansango Deacken, Clerk of the Gabonese Senate; Mr. Christian Baptiste Quentin, Speaker’s Chief of Staff; Ms. Jeanne Berthe Mavoungou, Advisor to the Speaker; Mr. Guy Roger Ombanda-Lendira, Communications Advisor to the Speaker; Mr. Marcel Dikouba, Chief of Protocol; Mr. Raphaël Ombembe Ntaogne, Director of aides; as well as Ms. Angèle Traoret, Director of Communications. Mr. François Ebibi, Chargé d’Affaires e.p. for Gabon in Canada, also accompanied the delegation during their stay.

In Ottawa, the delegation held meetings with:

• The Honourable Noël A. Kinsella, Speaker of the Senate;
• The Honourable Andrew Scheer, M.P., Speaker of the House of Commons;
• The Honourable Andrée Champagne, Senator, Chair of the Canadian Branch of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF) and members of the Branch;
• The Honourable Percy Mockler, Chair, and the Honourable Fernand Robichaud, Senators, Deputy Chair, Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forest;
• The Honourable Bernard Valcourt, P.C., M.P., Minister of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency)(Francophonie); and
• The Honourable Mauril Bélanger, P.C., M.P., Co-Chair of the Canada-Africa Parliamentary Association and members of the Executive Committee.

In Quebec City, the delegation met with:

• Mr. Jacques Chagnon, Speaker of the Quebec National Assembly and other M.N.A.;
• Ms. Monique Gagnon-Tremblay, Minister for International Relations;
• Ms. Fatimata Dia Touré, Director, Institut de l’énergie et de l’environnement de la Francophonie (IEPF) as well as other representatives;
• Mr. Robert Beauregard, Dean, Faculty of Forestry, Geography and Geomatics and other representatives of the Faculty, Université Laval;
• Ms. Pierrette Defoy Dolbec, Director General, Ms. Madeleine Pettigrew, Assistant, and Mr. Jacques Soucy, Warehouse Manager, Collaboration Santé Internationale; and
• Mr. Hervé Deschênes, Vice-President, and other representatives of FP Innnovations – Wood Products.

In Trois-Rivières, the delegation met with:

• Mr. André Paradis, Acting Rector, and Mr. Sylvain Benoit, Director of the Office of International Relations, Université du Québec, in Trois-Rivières.

In Montreal, the delegation met with:

• The Honourable Claude Carignan, Senator;
• Mr. Ronald Denom, President, Ms. Fadima Touré-Dialo, Vice-President, Africa, as well as other representatives of SNC Lavalin International; and
• Mr. J. Denis Bélisle, Chair of the Board, Dessau International.

The visit served to strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries and provided an opportunity for the delegates to meet with various Canadian officials of the both the federal and Québec governments. A number of topics were discussed, including natural resources management, especially forests, student exchanges, international cooperation and training of staff in the health sector. The delegates also visited the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Ottawa.