ADDRESS BY HE Madame BUSAYA MATHELIN

AMBASSADOR OF THE KINGDOM OF THAILAND IN SENEGAL

THE OCCASION OF THE 85th ANNIVERSARY OF HIS MAJESTY THE KING OF THAILAND

FAMOUS AS NATIONAL DAY OF THAILAND

SALON DES PRINCES HOTEL TERROU-BI

Thursday, November 29, 2012, 19h00-21h00

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- HE Mr. Oumar Gueye, Minister of Water and 

    Sanitation, Representative of the Government of Senegal and Guest 

    honor

- Distinguished guests

- The members of the Thai community in Dakar

- Ladies and gentlemen

Good evening.

I have the honor and great pleasure to welcome you tonight at the National Day Reception held to celebrate the 85 ^th  Anniversary of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand. I would like to thank you all for agreeing to align with us on this solemn occasion.

This is the first time I offers a reception for National Day in Dakar after taking office in the month of May. I would like to share my experience over the last six months in this friendly country and welcoming and look to the future. 

The last six months have allowed me to understand why Senegal is considered a model of democracy in the region. I quickly noticed that democracy is deeply rooted in Senegalese society. This is reflected daily by the freedom of the press, the debates on gender equality in politics and academia, the strong presence of civil society and the insistence of the Government on good governance, transparency and the rule of law. Pluralism and religious tolerance are another important aspect of Senegal, which is remarkable. I am convinced that democratic values ​​deeply rooted in the minds of the Senegalese people and respect for difference are central to the political stability of Senegal. This allows the Government to give priority to the needs of his people. This is an aspect that I personally really admire.

It is also one of the reasons why Thailand considers Senegal as a key partner in West Africa. Thailand and Senegal have good relations since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1980. We share many values ​​and characteristics as a country and the level of our people. These shared values ​​are the basis for good relations and partnership between our two countries. However, I am convinced that much remains to do together to strengthen existing cooperation.

Looking ahead, we aim to strengthen partnership for development between our two countries and to promote more contacts pushed through cultural activities and exchange of delegations led by the private sector.

About development cooperation, we intend to strengthen our partnership with Senegal and a tripartite cooperation with a third country or an international organization to create synergy from pooled resources.

Among the areas on which we will focus, we can mention: 1) agricultural development such as rice, 2) the development of aquaculture and, 3) the processing of agricultural products, to promote safety and food self-sufficiency for Senegal by 2018.

With the development of contacts, we see that there is much untapped potential, only because of limited knowledge and interactions between our peoples. Therefore, I intend to reduce this information gap and bring the Senegalese and Thai peoples through adequate cultural and commercial activities.

In summary, the relationship between our two countries can be described as equal. The decomposition of the  word "equal"  could be illustrated as follows:

ed: as an exchange; exchange of know-how, trade, cultural exchanges

      between peoples.

g: as a kindness, a quality common to the Senegalese and Thais.

a: as friendship.

l: as links; the development of relations creates stronger bonds.

e: take as a keyword to illustrate and highlight all items

    precedents.

Finally, I would like to thank our cooperation partners including the Senegalese agencies, international organizations and the diplomatic community for their valuable assistance in the past. I am confident that with your support and our cooperation, we will continue to develop many joint projects in the future.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

Thank you for your attention and I wish you all a pleasant evening.

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