Busan speech

On the occasion of the ceremony of handing

The Africa Road Builders – Babacar NDIAYE Trophy

Busan – Republic of Korea, May 23, 2018

 

Mr. President of the AfDB,

Mr. Babacar NDIAYE Family Representative,

Professor Carlos LOPES,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Honorable guests,

Thank you all for responding to our invitation for the delivery ceremony of The Africa Road Builders – Trophée Babacar NDIAYE 2018. We want to express our gratitude to the authorities of the Republic of Korea, for the quality of the welcome we receive. since we arrived in this country full of dynamism.

 

Thanks to the African Development Bank, to its President, Dr. Akinwumi ADESINA, the Godfather of this edition, as well as to all his collaborators who spared no effort for the success of this ceremony.

 

While coming here to South Korea, many could ask “But why Korea? Why so far from Africa? For us, the answer came as soon as we arrived in this extraordinary country.

 

Bridges, roads, airports, trains do not escape us. If South Korea is an example of industrialization, it is certainly due to the quality of the transport infrastructure that preceded and constantly energizes the economy at all times and at all levels. Thanks again to the AfDB and President ADESINA who continue to place transport at the heart of Africa’s development. Thanks again to Korea for this real source of inspiration, visible and palpable.

 

Thanks to all the panelists, and especially to the Chair of the Panel, Professor Carlos LOPES, whose contributions already recognized outside the African continent, will help, we are convinced, Africa in its quest for industrialization.For our part, we want to put the roads and transport at the center of the debate. Infrastructure and transport services. That’s the meaning of The Africa Road Builders – Trophée Babacar NDIAYE 2018. This initiative, named after a worthy son of Africa, has been at your disposal for the last three years and aims to help boost good policies and good practices in the field of road and transport, through the recognition of particulars that both undertake.

 

President Babacar Ndiaye to whom we devoted a minute of silence earlier, will remain the inspiration of our initiative. We keep and we will always keep Dr Babacar NDIAYE, the image of a great man who inspires, nurtures and motivates the noblest dreams for our continent. He showed us in the evening of his life how many times he wanted the generations after him to “succeed”.

 

Last year again, on the same occasion in Ahmedabad, he was with us, as he was in Lusaka, despite the distance, despite the weight of age, despite his responsibilities. We will never stop paying tribute to him for this unique support to the generations who follow him.

 

President Babacar Ndiaye, you are here tonight, we are convinced, and we still say thank you, thank you and thank you … Thank you for yesterday, thank you for today and thank you for tomorrow. I would also like to express my gratitude to his biological family, who is represented tonight by Mr. Djibril Ndiaye, his son, who came from Senegal. At this moment, I would like to salute this year’s laureates and especially President Uhuru KENYATTA, represented this evening. Congratulation Excellency Mr. President of the Republic. Earlier, the Chairman of the Selection Committee will make a solemn reading that explains the choice made about you and your country.

 

But already, we would like to say that by the Super Prize Great Builder – Trophée Babacar NDIAYE of The Africa Road Builders, we want to encourage you to do more for the development of your people and for that of Africa as a whole. So thank you for agreeing to be this model that we will promote for the next 12 months and beyond.

 

Mr. President of the AfDB,

Mr. Babacar NDIAYE Family Representative,

Professor Carlos LOPES,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Honorable guests,

ACTUROUTES, which is an information and news platform for roads and transport, initiator of this event, is now supported by network Media for Infrastructure and Finance in Africa (MIFA), which brings together media players from all over African regions. So thank you to all the colleagues who tirelessly participate in this adventure and especially the President of MIFA, Mr. Adama WADE, who is also the Publication Director of the Financial Afrik Magazine.

 

Thanks to all our other partners: AGEROUTE Côte d’Ivoire, QUIPUX Afrique, TV5MONDE. Our sincere thanks to the Senegalese authorities who allowed us to launch this edition in Dakar on May 3rd.Thank you all who came.