NIAMEY, March 11, 2026 – H.E. Abdoulaye Abdelkerim Abbo Grou, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Chad to the Republic of Niger, granted a diplomatic audience to H.E. Kocou Armand HOUANYE, Executive Secretary of the Niger Basin Authority (NBA). Accompanying the NBA Executive Secretary were: (i) Mrs. Aminata Traoré Barry, Accounting Officer, and (ii) Mrs. Eulodie Davodoun, Secretary to the Executive Secretary.

Opening the audience, the Executive Secretary expressed his profound appreciation to the Chadian Ambassador for the exemplary cooperation between the Embassy of Chad in Niger and the NBA Executive Secretariat. Furthermore, he expressed his deep gratitude for the Ambassador’s steadfast support in monitoring the smooth operation of the Authority’s activities within the Chadian portion of the Niger Basin.

The audience provided a strategic opportunity for both officials to review the activities and future outlook of the sub-regional Institution, whose mission is to promote regional cooperation among its nine member countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, and Chad), and to ensure the integrated and sustainable development of the shared Niger River Basin resources.

The NBA Executive Secretary seized the opportunity to formally convey, through the Ambassador, his profound gratitude to H.E. Marshal Mahamat Idriss Déby, President of the Republic of Chad, and the Minister of Water and Energy, NBA Supervising Minister in Chad. He commended their unwavering political stewardship and strategic support, which remain essential for the good governance and the fulfillment of the mission assigned to the sub-regional organization.

The high-level exchange centered on the following areas of mutual interest:

- Chad’s exemplary performance in implementing the Programme for the Integrated Development and Adaptation to Climate Change in the Niger Basin (PIDACC/NB) and the imperative to sustain this implementation momentum through to the Programme’s formal closure on December 31, 2027;

- The NBA’s 2026 investment portfolio for Chad;

- The implementation of Resolution No. 10 of the 44th Ordinary Session of the NBA Council of Ministers of 5 December 2025 in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. The resolution is on the recruitment of new staff for the Executive Secretariat by June 30, 2026;

- Chad’s contributions towards the construction of the NBA Headquarters Construction. Following the directive from the virtual Extraordinary Session of 7 November 2025, the Executive Secretary confirmed that the project is poised for an imminent launch;

- The implementation of the Resolution adopted at the Extraordinary Session of the NBA Council of Ministers held on November 7, 2026, on the organization of the 13th Summit Conference of Heads of State and Government of the NBA in 2026;

- The progress toward the establishment and operationalization of the Regional Climate Change Adaptation Fund in the Niger Basin (RCCAF/NB) as part of the implementation of the PIDACC/NB.

The NBA Executive Secretary placed strategic emphasis on soliciting H.E. Abdoulaye Abdelkerim Abbo Grou’s diplomatic support in the preparation and successful execution of an upcoming high-level advocacy mission with the Chadian authorities on the topics discussed during the meeting.

Ultimately, this high-level encounter reaffirmed the shared commitment to deepening regional cooperation and promoting transformative initiatives to ensure the integrated, sustainable and climate-resilient development in the Niger Basin.