Cote d'Ivoire to get five universities in five years - Ouattara

Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (PANA) – The president of Côte d'Ivoire, Alassane Ouattara, announced on Monday in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, that five universities would be established in the next five years in his country.

Speaking at a round table of heads of state who participated in the opening of the Triennial meeting of the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA), he said these universities would be created at San Pedro, Bandoukrou and Man.

"The five new universities will complement the three existing ones which will be rehabilitated to enable Ivorian students to go back to the faculties next September," he said.

President Ouattara said the necessary facilities would be put in place to enable Côte d’Ivoire to catch up after the delay it has had over the past 12 years.

"We invested enomously in the purchase of armament over the past 12 years instead of devoting public finances to the development of education. As a result, the rate of poverty which stood at 30% in 1990 is more than 50% today. My ambition is to reverse this trend by giving to education all the means it needs," he affirmed.

The presidents of Burkina Faso, Blaise Compaoré; Mali, Amadou Toumani Touré; and Niger, Issoufou Mahamadou, also said there was the need for their countries to pay special attention to the development of education and training sectors.
-0- PANA SEI/AAS/PAP/MA 13Feb2012