Cablegate: Mozambique - Ambassador La Lime's Farewell Call On

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RR RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHMR
DE RUEHTO #0728 1711137
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 201137Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY MAPUTO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5543
INFO RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORP 0053
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC

UNCLAS MAPUTO 000728

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SIPDIS

AF/S FOR HTREGER
MCC FOR SGAULL AND MHARRINGTON
USAID FOR AA/AFR AND AFR/SA
USDOC FOR RTELCHIN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID EINV ETRD PREL MZ
SUBJECT: Mozambique - Ambassador La Lime's Farewell Call on
President Guebuza

1. (U) On June 15 Ambassador La Lime paid a farewell call on
President Guebuza. Guebuza complimented the Ambassador for
being instrumental in furthering good relations between the
Mozambique and the United States, emphasizing that he
"greatly appreciated" her helpful role. He said he was
pleased with progress toward a Millennium Challenge
Corporation (MCC) compact, and understood fully that
preparing for an MCC compact required thorough preparations
that would take time. He added that his June 1 meeting in
Cape Town with MCC CEO John Danilovich had been very
positive. Guebuza observed that MCC would make a big
difference in his country's development, with its focus on
performance indicators - particularly in the area of
promoting business development.

2. (U) Guebuza told the Ambassador that he had traveled four
times to the United States in 2005. He said he was
especially grateful to have had the opportunity to talk up
Mozambique in his address to the Corporate Council on
Africa's bi-annual business summit in Baltimore last June
and to meet with business representatives while there.

3. (U) Somewhat as an aside, Guebuza informed her that he
was eager to improve Mozambique's civil service, making it
more efficient and staffing it with competent, committed
officials. He said that as a poor country his government
could not afford to pay high salaries, but that perhaps
other benefits could be employed as incentives. He had
formed a working group on the subject, he said, to look at
successes and failures in the region, and he believed
Mozambique had much to learn from Botswana's civil service.

4. (U) The Ambassador thanked the President, agreeing with
him that relations had deepened greatly during her tenure.
She pointed out that she had highlighted President Guebuza's
strong public leadership in the fight against HIV/AIDS at
the PEPFAR annual meeting in Durban earlier that week. It
was plain to all at the conference, she emphasized, that
President Guebuza stood out among other African heads of
state for his responsible leadership towards his people in
fighting HIV/AIDS. She told him that Washington was pleased
with Mozambique's efforts, and that she looked forward to
the USG continuing its strong support to Mozambique.

La Lime

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