PARIS, Sept 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Republic of Congo President Denis Sassou Nguesso landed in Paris for environment talks with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday aboard a luxury private Boeing 787 Dreamliner, sources said.
Talks were focused on the fate of the Republic of Congo’s basin forest, commonly referred to as the “second green lung” of the planet after the Amazon.
France in 2010 launched a wide-ranging corruption probe into the ruling elite in Congo-Brazzaville. To date, five members of Nguesso’s entourage have been charged.
His meeting on Tuesday with Macron focused on the protection of the forest and biodiversity in the Congo basin, according to the French presidency.
Sassou reiterated his support for the Central African Forest Initiative, a partnership launched by Norway worth about $60 million.
Congo pledged to put in place a plan to protect forests, biodiversity and peat lands, in return for financial assistance, the French presidency and a Congolese official said.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced in July that it would grant $448.6 million over three years to Brazzaville to revive its economy, which has taken a knock due to falling oil prices, in the hope of more “transparency” of its public accounts. — NNN-AGENCIES
