OIC names envoy to Central African Republic

Iyad Madani, secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), has appointed a special envoy to the Central African Republic (CAR).
A press statement released by the OIC said Madani has chosen Cheikh Tidiane Gadio, a former minister for foreign affairs of the Republic of Senegal, to be the special envoy for CAR.
An experienced mediator, a distinguished academic and a veteran politician, Gadio had served his country as the chief diplomat for close to a decade from early 2000 to late 2009. He is currently the president of an independent think tank called the Institute for Pan-African Strategies based in Dakar, Senegal.
The appointment of Gadio comes in the wake of the OIC’s emergency executive committee meeting in Jeddah on Feb. 20 on the grave situation prevailing in the Central African Republic. The ministerial level meeting requested the secretary-general to urgently designate a special envoy to the CAR, among other issues.
Madani, while expressing confidence that Gadio would realize the objectives of his new assignment, also urged OIC member states to extend their full support to the special envoy to ensure the mission’s success.