Burkinabe’s Desire Ouedraogo replaces Ghana’s Victor Gbeho as new ECOWAS President

Ambassador Kadre Desire Ouedraogo of Burkina Faso has been appointed new President of the ECOWAS Commission for a non-renewable four-year term replacing Ghana’s James Victor Gbeho who leaves the post after two years.

According to a statement from the West African regional bloc, the decision was taken at a two-day 40th Ordinary Session of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government which ended in Abuja February 17, 2012.

Until his new appointment, Mr Ouedraogo was Ambassador and Plenipotentiary of Burkina Faso to the Kingdom of Belgium, The Kingdom of the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland as well as the country’s Permanent Representative to the European Union, the Organization for the prohibition of Chemical Weapons, and the World Customs Organization.

He was Burkina Faso’s Prime Minister between 1996 and 2000, Minister of
Economic and Finance 1996-1997 and between 1993 and 1996, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of West Africa States (BCEAO) in Dakar, Senegal.

Ouedraogo is fluent in French and English, and reads Spanish.

By Ekow Quandzie