Activities of Secretary-General in Côte d’Ivoire, 21-22 May

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrived in Côte d’Ivoire from New York, after a brief stopover in Accra, Ghana, on Saturday morning, 21 May.

He landed in the capital, Yamoussoukro, to attend the inauguration ceremony of President Alassane Ouattara.  After the ceremony and the lunch organized by the new President, he had a tête-à-tête with Mr. Ouattara.  The Secretary-General had said that his participation in the inauguration was in light of the special circumstances surrounding the installation of the democratically elected Government in Côte d’Ivoire.

The Secretary-General left for Abidjan that night.  The following day, Sunday, he met with the peacekeepers and staff of the United Nations mission in the country, UNOCI, as well as with the United Nations country team there.

The Secretary-General also visited the “Union des Eglises Evangéliques Services et Œuvres”, UEESO, camp for internally displaced people, in the Cocody neighbourhood of Abidjan.  He told the internally displaced persons that he was there to express his solidarity, to offer help and hope that their lives would soon return to normal.  “The United Nations stood by your side during the recent crisis.  We will continue to stand by you as your country rebuilds,” he added.  (See Press Release SG/SM/13587)

The Secretary-General left Abidjan for Abuja, Nigeria, in the early afternoon of 22 May.