​(Communicated by the President's Spokesperson)
 
President Reuven Rivlin today (Monday) met at his residence with President of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Marcel Alain De Souza who was visiting Israel.
 
In welcoming his guest, President Rivlin congratulated Mr. De Souza on his election as President of ECOWAS, and expressed his appreciation for the important work of the organization. "Africa is key to the future of the world. Your organization facilitates the cooperation between the individual African countries, and also between Africa and the whole world which looks to see what is happening there." The President spoke of the fruitful cooperation between Israel and nations represented by ECOWAS over the years and said, "We have excellent cooperation, and we welcome the opportunity for Israel to contribute from its knowledge and abilities in the fields of health, water and agriculture; a sign of the friendship between us."
 
President De Souza thanked the President and said, "I stand at the head of a large economic community, which includes 15 nations, and around 320 million people. There is tremendous potential, which is derived also from the young populations of the countries. We need development, and wish to weave more and more ties with Israel. We have an abundance of raw materials, and wonderful youth who need training and guidance."