Your Excellency, the President of the Republic of Chad,

Your Excellencies, the Heads of States,

Honorable and Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen.

It is a great honor for me to take part in this ceremony marking the inauguration of the first barrel of Chadian oil. Please allow me to take this opportunity to express my great thanks and my gratitude to the Chadian government and to the Chadian people for the warm welcome and the excellent organization of these festivities.

On behalf of Mr. Wolfensohn, President of the World Bank Group, and on behalf of Mr. Madavo, Vice President for the Africa region, I also want to pay tribute to all the people, institutions and companies for the huge efforts they made to make this project a reality. The World Bank is proud to have contributed to this long process, which enables us today to celebrate the advent of Chad’s oil era.

The project is a unique example of a partnership between two governments, three oil companies and the World Bank Group to develop the resources of the land. I would like to thank all the partners for their efforts to get to this day. The project is the most important one in Africa today and should show how rational development of mining or oil deposits can benefit the people and can do so with the respect for the environment.

The World Bank Group agreed to participate in the financing of this project for two principal reasons. The first one is that the project represented an exceptional opportunity for Chad to use the oil revenues to make up for the developmental delays accumulated during the periods of internal conflicts. The second reason was to help ensure the project is carried out in the best way possible as far as environmental protection and social development are concerned in the areas affected by the project.

Today, a little more than three years after the approval of the project’s financing plan, Chad and Cameroon can be proud of the physical completion of the project. It was completed earlier than planned, without exceeding the budget and in accordance with the rigorous standards of the Environmental Management Plan. The credit for these results goes to the consortium of course, but also to the two countries. They were able to create the favorable conditions for this excellent performance, which honors all of Africa and provides an example for other projects of this kind.

Of course this project is not without risks. Together we were able to manage the risks associated with the construction phase. Now the big challenge is to use the oil revenues efficiently in order to improve the living conditions of all Chadians. The oil revenues should enable Chad to accelerate the realization of the objectives of the millennium. To reach these objectives, good economic management will be needed in a framework of good governance.

Important efforts have already been made by the Chadian authorities, with the support of all the participating parties, during the past year to put in place the terms of the law managing the oil revenues. A series of measures, including several rules and regulations, were adopted in order to flesh out and make operational the institutional framework of this law. The Committee of Control and Monitoring of the Oil Revenues is now well established. The ability of the ministries in charge of priority sectors to prepare and implement budgets was strengthened by the establishment of administrative and financial departments.

Admittedly a lot remains to be done so that Chad can have the necessary capacities to make the best possible use of the oil revenues. I can assure you that your partners will remain at your side in this task.

Your Excellency, the President of the Republic, the oil revenues alone will not be enough to make up for all the delays. It is essential that the international community continues to support Chad’s efforts to accelerate its economic and social development. In this respect, an efficient and transparent use of the first oil revenues by the Chadian authorities will be decisive to strengthen the trust of the Chadian people and of the international authorities.

Be assured, Mr. President, that the World Bank Group intends to remain firmly committed to help the Chadian government and the Chadian people to fully realize the huge potential of the country.

Thank you.