On his second day of an official visit to Libreville, Colonel Michaël Randrianirina, the President of the Refoundation of the Republic of Madagascar, embarked on an extensive tour of the Gabonese capital’s most iconic infrastructure on Saturday, June 6. Accompanied by Vice-President Hermann Immongault, the Malagasy leader explored the modern Cité Émeraude, the scenic Baie des Rois, and the prestigious Cité de la Démocratie. Within the Cité de la Démocratie complex, Colonel Randrianirina notably inspected the grand banquet hall, the expansive Congress Palace, and the esteemed Omar Bongo Ondimba museum.
Following this intensive “tourism marathon,” the Madagascan head of state shared his reflections, stating that his observations in Gabon powerfully illustrate a continent undergoing significant transformation. He emphasized that these achievements underscore the determination of African leaders to modernize their respective nations and accelerate their development trajectories. “Everything I witnessed in Gabon exemplifies the strong will of numerous African presidents to modernize and advance their countries, and indeed, Africa as a whole,” he declared. While not envisioning an identical replication of the Gabonese model, acknowledging that “processes are not the same,” Colonel Michaël Randrianirina commended the remarkable progress achieved by the Gabonese authorities during their period of Transition.
He further noted that some of Gabon’s accomplishments were widely considered challenging, if not impossible, to achieve within such a compressed timeframe, yet Gabon successfully realized them. Consequently, he expressed his keen interest in drawing valuable insights from the Gabonese experience to support the ongoing refoundation process initiated in his own country, Madagascar.
“As you mentioned earlier, we will endeavor to learn from Gabon to successfully guide Madagascar’s refoundation process, with the aim of leading the country to presidential elections as swiftly as possible,” he affirmed. His clear objective is to steer Madagascar towards a presidential election without undue delay. Colonel Michaël Randrianirina departed Libreville yesterday during the late morning hours.
