URU, Alm.del - 2008-09 - Bilag 174: Invitation til møde med formanden for Afrikas Union tirsdag den 5. maj 2009.

Jean Ping (b. November 24,1942), is a Gabonese diplomat, and since February 1,2008 he's the head of the Commission of the African Union. He replaced AlphaOumar Konaré, ex-Malian president who previously held this post.Mr. Ping holds a doctorate in economics from the University of Paris I (Panthéon-Sorbonne). A recipient of numerous honors in recognition of his outstanding careerand service to his country, Mr. Ping has been awarded Gabon’s medals ofCommander of the Equatorial Star, Grand Officer of the Equatorial Star,Commander of the Maritime Order and Commander of the Gabonese NationalOrder of Merit.A career diplomat, Mr. Ping began his professional life at the United Nations Educational, Scientific andCultural Organization (UNESCO) in Paris, where he was recruited in 1972 as an international civil servant inthe Sector for External Relations and Cooperation. From 1978 to 1984, he served as Permanent Delegate ofthe Gabonese Republic to UNESCO. His diplomatic and political experience led to his appointment, in 1984,as Director of the Cabinet of the President of Gabon, a position he held until 1990, when he was elevated tothe post of Minister of Information. In that capacity, he also had jurisdiction over postal services andtelecommunications, tourism, reform of the parapublic sector and parliamentary issues and servedadditionally as Government Spokesperson.Throughout the 1990s, Mr. Ping successively held a variety of appointments at the ministerial level,including Minister of Mines, Energy and Water Resources and deputy minister in the Ministry of Finance,Economy, Budget and Privatization. Later, he was Minister of Planning, Environment and Tourism, aposition he held until his appointment, in 1999, as Ministre d’Etat, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Cooperationand la Francophonie.Mr. Ping, who has extensive experience in international and regional diplomacy, has headed his country’sdelegation at numerous sessions of the United Nations General Assembly, as well as at internationalconferences and summits, including those of UNESCO, the World Bank, the Organization of African Unity,the Non-Aligned Movement, the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the Organization of PetroleumExporting Countries, of which he was President in 1993. Mr. Ping also led Gabon’s delegation at suchdiverse forums as summits of the International Organization of la Francophonie, top-level conferencesbetween France and African countries, conferences between the African, Caribbean and Pacific States andthe European Union, the China-Africa Forum on Cooperation, the Third Tokyo International Conference onAfrican Development and conferences between the United States and Africa organized in the framework ofthe African Growth and Opportunity Act. At the regional and subregional levels, Mr. Ping has headeddelegations at conferences and summits of the Central African Customs and Economic Union, the CentralAfrican Economic and Monetary Community, the Economic Community of Central African States and theNew Partnership for Africa’s Development.Mr. Ping’s distinguished 32-year career in government has been marked by diplomatic success, notably hiscontribution to the many efforts by the President of the Gabonese Republic, El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba,to restore peace and stability in Central Africa, in particular in the Republic of the Congo, Chad, the CentralAfrican Republic and Sao Tome and Principe.

Curriculum Vitae: H.E. Mr. Jean PING