This is to congratulate warmly my good friend and President of Cote d’Ivoire, S.E.M. Alassane Dramane Ouattara, for his landslide victory in Sunday’s, October 25, peaceful presidential election, which saw him re-elected with a stronger mandate as President.

The outcome of the election is a clear vote of confidence in the sterling leadership provided by Alassane Ouattara, who, over the last four years, has transformed a war-ravaged country into a rare African bright spot, the stand-out performer in the Region, and has accelerated the process of national reconciliation.

With growth rates projected at 9.6 percent this year, a rapidly expanding middle class, huge investments in infrastructure and fiscal incentives which have spurred private sector development, and a diversification of Ivorian agriculture, bringing in its wake $12 billion in export revenues, Ivorians have shown the rest of Africa, and indeed those of us in Ghana, the immense benefits of electing an experienced, far-sighted and practical leader. 

It is my hope that, within the period of his second term in office, he will not only help strengthen the relations between Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, but, together with the leaders of Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal, President Ouattara will also help accelerate the realisation of the vision of regional integration.

Already a market of some 350 million people, with the potential of 500 million people by 2035, this genuine regional market can provide immense opportunities for West African enterprise and ingenuity, leading to sustained prosperity for the populations of the Region.

Warm congratulations once again to President Alassane Ouattara and the people of Cote d’Ivoire. God bless him and the Ivorian people, and best wishes for his and the country’s continued success.

……signed……

Nana Akufo-Addo

2016 NPP Presidential Candidate, Ghana