Aquassistance Organization

by Jean-François Bost, Chairman of the Board

Despite the current crisis atmosphere which doesn’t give rise to optimism, I abide by the tradition and wish you happiness, health, success in your personal and family life, as well as in your associative involvement.

I also wish a good year for our association; may its projects always be successful and its survival ensured by the steady increase in the number of its members. May the relations with our partners - companies of the Group, NGOs and local authorities - develop in mutual trust.

I express my best wishes to the people of the countries where we operate, hoping that their lot will improve in spite of the economic crisis, the disasters and wars that hit them very hard.

A special thought goes to the people of three countries where we operate or soon will: the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Palestine, victims of endless conflict and Haiti hit by several hurricanes in a particularly disastrous political and economic environment.

At its meeting on 16 December 2008 the Board of Directors approved five new projects. Zogbodomey (Benin), Ankadinondry Sakay (Madagascar), Ambohimbory (Madagascar), Tafacirga (Mali), Beit Sira (Palestine).

The Board also decided after studies carried out on site to continue with the two projects approved at previous meetings: N’Gaparu (Senegal) and Kasongo-Lunda (RDC).

In November 2008, Aquassistance started three partnerships with French local authorities on decentralized cooperation projects. Decentralized cooperation is the possibility for French local authorities, to enter into partnerships with local authorities abroad and once an agreement has been signed and while respecting the international commitments of France to finance their projects. The local authority can rely on an NGO such as Aquassistance for the implementation of its projects.

The French local authorities are now cooperating in 115 countries. This phenomenon involves all the French regions, the vast majority of French departments, and the various levels of grouping of local authorities and municipalities.

 For Aquassistance, the objective is to mobilize its professional skills to execute water supply projects in three towns in West Africa: Nara in Mali, Legmoin in Burkina Faso and Demdeng in Cameroon. The French local authority partners are respectively: Quimperlé (Brittany), Grasse (French Riviera) and Chamonix Mont-Blanc (Alps).