Conakry, 1^stOctobre 2012, President Alpha Condé celebrated Guinea’s historic progress tonight on the eve of the 54th anniversary of the country’s independence.

In a televised address to the nation, President Condé told the people that their combined efforts were the key to Guinea’s success.

Declaring that poverty could be eradicated, he said :"Guinea has shown that by working together anything is possible."

Calling on the people of Guinea to be proud of the country’s achievements, he said : "Be proud of yourselves.  At last Guinea can now move forward.  There is a long road ahead but I firmly believe that working together we can succeed.   Today, many of our ambitions are finally possible and achievable. We will use this new opportunity to reduce poverty and create jobs."

In a wide-ranging speech, President Condé announced an overhaul of the education system needed to improve educational standards throughout the country. The initial priorities will be to tackle the high levels of illiteracy and offer skills to the workforce. The President intends to do reform the primary school system, improve the quality of teaching and design training courses to satisfy the jobs market.

President Condé listed the achievments since he came to power in 2010: the reform of the military ; qualifying for massive debt relief under the IMF’s Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, agricultural initiatives to support rice cultivation , improving electricity supply in cites ; and political compromise over the composition of the country’s independent electoral commission (CENI) ; renewed confidence vis-a-vis its partners and a stronger position in the world of diplomacy.

Since taking office two years ago the President has paid particular attention to the entrepreneurial efforts of women. Last night he said they would play an important role improving the economy. For Guinea to achieve growth, women must have wider access to credit and the informal sector must be gradually transformed into SMEs, he said.

Reaching out to the people who still experience hardship, he said: "Poverty does not have to be a fact of life. But the end of poverty will not be possible without improved access to basic services such as water and electricity."

Emphasising the need for people to pull together throughout the country he appealed to the people of Guinea to work in a spirit of calm, productive co-operation.

"We are all part of the same Nation, whatever our age, whatever our convictions may be, wherever we live."

And in a declaration that will please the international community as well as the domestic audience, he repeated his call for legislative elections to be held as soon as possible:"The elections will give us a representative National Assembly that reflects the will of the sovereign people, where debates will be held – debates that, regardless of differences of opinion, will always be constructive. This peaceful dialogue is crucial to the balance of any democracy."

Le Bureau de Presse de la Présidence