Audience: First Lady Dominique Ouattara receives Mrs Marie Chantal Uwanyiligira, World Bank Country Director

The First Lady, Mrs Dominique Ouattara, received Chantal Uwanyiligira, World Bank Country Director for Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, Guinea and Togo, on Tuesday March 11, 2025, at her offices in Cocody. The meeting provided an opportunity for the two women to exchange views on subjects of common interest, notably in the fields of education, health and entrepreneurship.

At the end of the audience, Mrs Marie Chantal Uwanyiligira praised the commitment and actions of the First Lady through her Children of Africa Foundation, which has been working for over 25 years to help vulnerable populations, particularly children and women. She expressed her admiration for the scope of the work accomplished and the relevance of the initiatives put in place.

A convergence of actions to help young girls

Ms. Uwanyiligira highlighted the potential synergies between the World Bank and the Children of Africa Foundation, particularly in terms of keeping girls in school. She stressed the importance of girls’ education, declaring: “A girl who learns is a girl who wins. This vision is in line with that of the First Lady, who has always worked for the education and empowerment of young girls.

According to the World Bank Country Director, the purpose of the audience was also to identify partnership opportunities to strengthen and increase initiatives already in place. “We want to use her platform to reach even more beneficiaries, especially the most vulnerable populations,” she asserted.

A shared commitment to fighting poverty

Mrs Uwanyiligira recalled that the World Bank, whose principal mission is the fight against poverty, shares the same concerns as the First Lady, who places the cause of the underprivileged at the heart of her actions. “We’re preaching to the converted”, she said, insisting that the First Lady and her Foundation are already very active in these fields.

Finally, she expressed her satisfaction for the warm welcome she had received, and her admiration for the scope of the work carried out by Mrs Dominique Ouattara. “I’m very happy to have met her, and very impressed by the work she’s doing,” she concluded.

This meeting marks an important step in the collaboration between the World Bank and the Children of Africa Foundation, with the shared ambition of improving the living conditions of the most fragile populations and promoting a better future for young girls in Côte d’Ivoire and the region.