Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda
Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda (born 1964) is a Gabonese politician who is currently serving as Prime Minister of Gabon since 16 July 2020, making her the first female prime minister of the country.She previously served as the Mayor of Libreville and later as the country's Defense Minister from February 2019 to July 2020.
Background
Raponda was born in 1964 in Libreville. Raponda is a member of the Mpongwe people.Raponda received a degree in economics and public finance from the Gabonese Institute of Economy and Finance.
Career
Raponda worked as Director General of the Economy and Deputy Director General the Housing Bank of Gabon.She served as minister of budget and public finance from February 2012 until January 2014. Raponda was elected Mayor of the capital city Libreville on 26 January 2014, representing the ruling Gabonese Democratic Party. She was the first woman to hold the position since 1956 and she served until 2019.She also became President of United Cities and Local Governments Africa. On 12 February 2019, Raponda was appointed as the Defense Minister of Gabon by president Ali Bongo Ondimba after the failed coup in January 2019. Raponda replaced Etienne Massard Kabinda Makaga, a member of the Bongo family, who had held the position since 2016. On 16 July 2020, Raponda was appointed as the Prime Minister of Gabon, after her predecessor Julien Nkoghe Bekale stepped down. She is the first woman to hold the position. Her appointment is the fourth cabinet shuffle by Ondimba since the failed coup. Her appointment comes during the dual health and economic crises due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the fall in the price of oil, one of the country's main resources.
Everything We Know about Gabon’s First Female Prime Minister, Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda
President of The Central African state of Gabon, Ali Bongo, has appointed former Budget Minister and Libreville’s first female mayor, Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda as the country’s first female Prime Minister, succeeding Julien Nkoghe Bekale, who stepped down a few days ago. Ali Bongo said in a statement: Today I appointed Ms. Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda as Prime Minister. For the first time in the history of #Gabon, a woman will hold this office. I thank her predecessor, @Pm_JulienNkoghe, which fulfilled his mission with loyalty and efficiency. Ossouka Raponda will be ensuring Gabon’s economic relaunch and necessary social support in light of the world crisis linked to COVID-19. She will take on two major challenges: declining oil production and prices, which have weighed on growth in recent years, and the COVID-19 pandemic, Reuters reports. Here are 7 facts about Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda: • Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda is 56 years old, and a Gabonese citizen. She is a member of the ruling party, Mpongwe. • She has a degree in Economics from the Gabonese Institute of Economy and Finance. • She began her career as the Director-General of Economy and Deputy Director-General of the Housing Bank of Gabon. • In February 2012, she was appointed the Minister for Budget, Public Accounts and the Public Service where she served until January 2014. • In 2014, Raponda was elected Mayor of the capital city Libreville representing the ruling Gabonese Democratic Party. • Rose was appointed as the Defence Minister in February 2019. • She also became President of United Cities and Local Governments Africa. • Ossouka Raponda, 56, was promoted from the defence ministry and takes over from Julien Nkoghe Bekale, who was appointed prime minister in January 2019. • She is an economist by training who graduated from the Gabonese Institute of Economy and Finance, specialising in public finance. • In 2012, she first became budget minister and then the first female mayor of the capital Libreville in 2014, as a candidate for Bongo’s Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG). • Ossouka Raponda’s challenges • In a statement, the president’s office said her mission will include “ensuring Gabon’s economic relaunch and necessary social support in the light of the world crisis linked to COVID-19”. • Heavily dependent on income from oil, the central African state has been badly hit by the slump in the price of crude oil as well as the impact of the new coronavirus on trade. • Bongo’s fitness questioned • Ossouka Raponda’s appointment comes at a time when opposition and civil society leaders are once more openly questioning Bongo’s fitness to govern after he suffered a stroke in October 2018. • He spent months abroad for treatment, and during this time the country was rocked by an attempted coup in January 2019. • The putsch bid lasted only a matter of hours, but was followed by a reshuffle that installed Nkoghe Bekale as prime minister and Ossouka Raponda as defence minister. • Several months later, the authorities launched a vast anti-corruption drive that led to the incarceration of Bongo’s right-hand man Brice Laccruche Alihanga and 20 associates, including four former ministers. • Bongo was elected in 2009 after the death of his father Omar who led the country for 42 years. The president reappeared in the media on Monday after several weeks of absence, pictured at a meeting of heads of the various branches of the armed forces and police. Director-General in Gabon to launch the youth network for a culture of peace in Africa From 12 to 14 December, UNESCO Director-General is undertaking an official visit to Gabon on the occasion of the Pan-African Forum, held under the theme “African Youth and the Challenge of the promotion of Culture of Peace in Africa”. This Forum is a direct follow-up to a number of high level conferences on the culture of peace in Africa, and particularly that of Luanda in 2013, and the action plan for the Culture of Peace in Africa that was launched on this occasion, giving the momentum to a vast movement of mobilization of civil society, women, and youth. This Forum, jointly organized by the Omar Bongo Ondimba Foundation for Peace, Science, Culture and the Environment, the Gabonese National Commission for UNESCO, with the support of UNESCO and the African Union, will mark the official launch of a Youth Network for a Culture of Peace in Africa. It will bring together Presidents and Representatives of National Youth Councils of the 54 Member States of the African Union, the Representatives of African youth organizations recognized by UNESCO and the African Union as well as other relevant organizations and the Secretaries General of National Commissions for UNESCO of the Africa region.
On the occasion of the Forum, the Director-General will designate the Gabonese musician and composer, Pierre Claver Akendengue, as a UNESCO Artist for Peace, in recognition of his outstanding musical commitment to promote intercultural dialogue, his contribution to the promotion of tolerance and his dedication to the ideals of the Organization. The Director-General will take part in the opening session alongside the Minister of National Education and Technical and Vocational Education, and President of UNESCO’s National Commission for Gabon, Ida Reteno Assonouet, the Honorary President of the Omar Bongo Ondimba Foundation for Peace, Science, Culture and the Environment, Pascaline Mferri Bongo Ondimba, the African Commissioner for Human Resources, Science and Technology, Martial Paul De Ikounga, the Mayor of Libreville, Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda, and UNESCO Special Envoy for Peace and Reconciliation, Forest Whitaker. While in Gabon, the Director-General is expected to hold a number of bilateral meetings with high level government representatives including the Minister of National Education and Technical and Vocational Education. She is also expected to meet with the United Nations Resident Coordinator, Marie-Evelyne Petrus-Barry. Launch of the Network Youth and Culture of Peace Libreville 13 December 2014 – “It is often said that youth is the future – but for me, youth is the present,” said the Director-General on 13 December in Libreville surrounded by 90 young African men and women, coming from forty countries for the Libreville Pan African Forum -- “African youth and the challenge of promoting a culture of peace”. The Forum was held from 11 to 13 December in Gabon, with the participation of Pascaline Mferri Bongo Ondimba, Honorary President of the Omar Bongo Ondimba Foundation, Ida Reteno Assonouet Minister of National Education and Technical and Vocational Education, President of UNESCO’s National Commission for Gabon, Anatole Collinet Makosso, Congolese Minister of Civic Education and President of the Conference of Ministers of the African Union responsible for youth, Rose Christiane OSSOUKA RAPONDA, Mayor of Libreville as well as Forest Whitaker, UNESCO Special Envoy for peace and reconciliation. The event was marked by the official launch of the “Youth and Culture of Peace” Network, made up of National Youth Councils and youth organizations from Africa and its Diaspora, engaged in actions aimed at promoting a culture of peace. Gabon will host its secretariat. The Forum also celebrated the strengthening of the partnership with UNESCO Special Envoy Forest Whitaker’s Foundation for Peace and Reconciliation (WPDI), which aims to promote young people's ability to work for peace and development in their communities within fragile states. Forest Whitaker said to the young participants: "your generation is the one that will grow the seeds" of peace and prosperity, "the only limit you will encounter is your imagination."
The Omar Bongo Ondimba Foundation for Peace, Science, Culture and the Environment also announced the creation of an international youth prize for the culture of peace that will reward the action of three youth organizations, who will share a total of 45 million CFA (nearly 85 000 USD). In her opening remarks, Ms Bokova stressed that "Peace has a face, and that face is youth." She invited youth to support and spread the culture of peace, conflict prevention and non-violence. She also wanted to ensure the support of UNESCO for African youth in general, giving the example of the youth training partnership in ICT signed with Airtel Gabon as well as the Youth Med-Net project involving youth organizations of North Africa and the Mediterranean. She praised the work of young people which began three months earlier on an online platform created by UNESCO with the support of the Foundation and Omar Bongo Ondimba of Gabon National Commission for UNESCO. Soon, the young people took ownership of the tool to discuss joint activities of their network and its organization. This preparatory work has mobilized more than 200 youth organizations from Africa and its Diaspora. The meeting of Libreville allowed online discussions to continue through a series of participatory and prospective work that enabled them to consider their long-term strategies. Through these innovations in the methods of work, young people were able to develop an action plan and a structure of the network that they will finalize in the coming months via the online platform. At the end of the Forum, a bureau of the network was elected with two delegates from each of the six regions of Africa region, including the Diaspora. Young participants from the Network concluded the event by singing the song that guided their Forum: “War does not pay; peace wants our arms”. African Women Surmount Obstacles to Redefine Their Countries’ Militaries WASHINGTON - In the 17th century, a fearsome group of African soldiers defended their kingdom against invaders and marauders. Well-trained and thousands strong, the Women Warriors of Dahomey inspired fear and won battles for more than 200 years in what is now Benin. In 20th-century Eritrea, women fought alongside men and led soldiers into combat throughout the country’s 30-year struggle for independence. They healed the wounded in underground hospitals sheltered from enemy fire and helped repair equipment for return to the battlefield. For hundreds of years, women have played a vital role in African peace and security. They’ve sacrificed in liberation struggles and offered unique skills in peacekeeping operations. But women’s contributions have come at a cost. Despite making strides toward representation across the continent’s militaries, women continue to fight harassment and discrimination at all levels of service. And when conflicts subside, they often receive fewer recognitions than their male counterparts.
Marginalization
South Africa’s military typifies the challenges women face. Gender-mainstreaming policies in the post-apartheid era have led to a steady improvement in representation; women now make up nearly a quarter of the country’s full-time armed forces. But difficulties persist. Ingrained attitudes about women’s roles and abilities have led to systemic marginalization and sexualization, according to research funded by the African Peacekeeping Network and the Nation Research Foundation of South Africa. Elsewhere on the continent, women constitute a small number of the armed forces, particularly at higher ranks. And in some countries, women are blocked from certain roles or excluded from the military altogether.
Leading armies
Preconceptions about women’s roles and abilities haven’t prevented some female soldiers from ascending to the highest ranks of their countries’ militaries. Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, the continent’s longest-serving female defense minister, has held her post in South Africa since 2012. Kenya’s defense minister, Raychelle Omamo, has served since 2013. Liberia Government Troops 1992A female soldier in the Armed Forces of Liberia, or AFL, returns from the front, Monrovia, Liberia, Saturday, Nov. 14, 1992. (AP/Hassan Amini) And the Central African Republic’s Marie-Noëlle Koyara has led her country’s armed forces for nearly two years. In a conversation with Koyara and VOA’s French-to-Africa service, Elizabeth Fitzsimmons, the United States’ deputy assistant secretary for the Bureau of African Affairs, highlighted the bilateral opportunities that a female defense minister creates. “We have a democratically elected government [in the Central African Republic]. We have a military with a minister of defense at the head who is a woman. And I think that speaks volumes about the potential for cooperation between the United States and the Central African Republic,” Fitzsimmons said. The CAR has a newfound chance to improve representation throughout its ranks. As part of an effort to bolster security and assume responsibility from international peacekeepers, Koyara plans to rebuild the country’s army. “For there to be a return to security, it is necessary for our security forces, of which the Central African Army is part, to be reconstructed, because we have experienced the highs and the lows with this army,” Koyara said. “So it’s necessary for an army to be republican and engaged in defending its country and its population.”
New posts
Elsewhere in Africa, Aisha Mohammed Mussa became Ethiopia’s defense minister in late 2018, after a cabinet reshuffle. And Rose Christiane Raponda, the continent’s newest female defense minister, assumed office earlier this month after Gabon reorganized its government following a failed coup attempt in January. Other top posts are also going to women. In the last two years, Kenya and Uganda promoted their first female major generals.
Peacekeeping role
Women also face challenges in peacekeeping missions across Africa, despite offering unique strengths. Female peacekeepers play a critical role in bringing women in conflict areas into the peace process and giving them a voice, according to the United Nations. Women can assist victims of sexual assault and shield children from violence in ways male soldiers cannot. In some cultures, only female peacekeepers can speak to women in need of aid — an unknown man doing so could cause fear or offense, shutting down important conversations and interventions. Women make up 22 percent of civilian peacekeeping posts, but they are poorly represented in military roles. In the seven active peacekeeping operations in Africa, women make up less than 4 percent of military personnel. MINURSO, the United Nations Mission for Referendum in Western Sahara, has the highest rate of female troops, at nearly 19 percent, but it’s also the smallest operation, with just over 200 personnel involved. Zimbabwe Female OfficerAir Commodore Ellen Chiweshe is photographed in Harare, Zimbabwe, Monday, Jan. 4, 2016. Chiweshe became the southern African country’s first female air commodore, the number-three post in the air force. (AP) Bintou Keita of Guinea, the U.N.’s assistant secretary general for peacekeeping operations, said the U.N. is committed to achieving gender parity by 2030. “Women peacekeepers act as role models in the local environment, inspiring women and girls in often male-dominated societies to push for their own rights and for participation in peace processes,” Keita wrote. As more women take on leadership roles across Africa’s military, the prospects for representation appear to be growing. Fatuma Ahmed, Kenya’s recently appointed major general, told Kenya CitizenTV that women in her country have accomplished a lot, but they’re just getting started. “We have doctors, we have engineers, we have lawyers, we have jet pilots, we have pilots in air defense. We’ve been able to be deployed in various phases of operations in the military at the tactical level, the operational level. Basically, in defense, in attack, in rescue, in reconnaissance. We are spoiled for choice. This is just the beginning.”
ACBF’s Hearty Congratulations to the Rt. Hon. Rose Christiane Ossouka RAPONDA, Prime Minister of the Republic of Gabon
Harare The African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), the African Union’s specialized agency for Capacity Development, joins the People of the Gabonese Republic and the Continent in celebrating the Rt. Hon. Rose-Christiane Ossouka RAPONDA on her appointment as the first female Prime Minister of her country. ACBF strongly believes in the outstanding ability of Prime Minister Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda to lead and influence the development and growth of her country and Africa. “The Right Hon. Rose-Christiane Ossouka Raponda has displayed remarkable dexterity, vision and courage in her leadership roles. We are therefore confident that her premiership will influence and propel women on the continent to play a more prominent role in building and shaping their countries and our continent for a prosperous future,” says the ACBF Executive Secretary, Prof. Emmanuel NNADOZIE. Mrs. Rose-Christiane Ossouka Raponda, appointed Prime Minister of Gabon on 16 July 2020, was the Governor of the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF) for Gabon from February 2012 to January 2014. On 30 June 2013, during the 22nd Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of ACBF, she was elected Chair of the Board of Governors for a period of one year and subsequently elected Mayor of Libreville on 26 January 2014. It was during her time in the Board of Governors that the Republic of Gabon hosted the 21st Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of ACBF in the capital Libreville. The Gabonese Republic took membership of the ACBF in 1998, following the first phase which started in 1991 and ended in 1997; thereby inspiring confidence in other African countries to join Africa’s leading Capacity Development entity.