Outgoing Ambassador, Miki Arbel, spoke at a State dinner in Yaounde on October 31, 2013.

The outgoing Israeli Ambassador to Cameroon, Miki Arbel, has described Cameroon as his country’s best friend in Africa.

Speaking at the Yaounde Hilton Hotel on October 31, 2013, on the occasion of a State dinner hosted by the Minister of External Relations, MINREX, Prof. Pierre Moukoko Mbonjo, on behalf of President Paul Biya, the Israeli diplomat said Cameroon has always stood by his country, given the difficult circumstances in which it finds itself.

On cooperation between the two countries, Ambassador Arbel spoke of Israel’s support to Cameroon in various areas like drip irrigation, health campaigns, training and fishing. He spoke of efforts made to get Israeli companies to invest in the country, expressing hope that some of these projects could materialise before the end of this year.

His country, he added, is assisting Cameroon to become self-sufficient in fish production, adding that agriculture was important for the country’s economic emergence. At the end of his four-year tenure, the Israeli diplomat said he felt like he knew the country very well, having felt at home during all this time. He said he was touched by the warmth of the people, culture, music, lifestyles, etc everywhere he went.

Speaking earlier in his toast, Minister Pierre Moukoko Mbonjo, said Cameroon admires Israel’s development model, adding that President Paul Biya is trying to ensure that the country becomes emergent by 2035. He noted that Ambassador Arbel’s tenure pushed forward relations between the two countries with various projects executed in solar energy development, drip irrigation and the organisation of health campaigns during which free treatment was offered to Cameroonian patients.

Ambassador Miki Arbel was later decorated by Prof. Pierre Moukoko Mbonjo with the medal of the Grand Officer of the National Order of Valour at the State dinner that also saw the participation of several cabinet ministers.