Georges Rebelo Chikoti (born 16 June 1955) is an

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

n diplomat..
Angola: Foreign Minister Considers Country's Investment Market Attractive
allAfrica He is, since 1 March 2020, the Secretary General of the Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS). He served as Angola's

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

from 2010 to 2017.

Early life and education

Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti was born at Dondi in

Huambo Province Huambo is a province of Angola. With an area of 34,270 km2, it is one of the geographically smaller provinces, situated in the Central Region approximately 450 km south east of the capital, Luanda. The province had a population of 2,01 ...

, Angola. Chikoti spent a great part of his childhood in

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...

, returning to Angola in 1975. In the early 1980s he was one of the first high-ranking officials of

UNITA The National Union for the Total Independence of Angola ( pt, União Nacional para a Independência Total de Angola, abbr. UNITA) is the second-largest political party in Angola. Founded in 1966, UNITA fought alongside the Popular Movement for ...

and their leader Jonas Savimbi subsequently sent him to Ivory Coast for an education program in 1978. He began studies at the University of Abidjan in 1979. He received a master's degree in Economic Geography in 1985. He then pursued doctoral studies at the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

, receiving a diploma of higher studies (with thesis) in 1986.

Career

Chikoti emigrated to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

in 1987 and worked at the

Imperial Bank of Canada The Imperial Bank of Canada was a Canadian bank based in Toronto, Ontario, during the late 19th century and early 20th century. History It was founded in 1873 as the Imperial Bank in Toronto by Henry Stark Howland, former vice president of the C ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

for several years before enrolling in the Institute of International Relations and Cooperation at the

University of Ottawa The University of Ottawa (french: Université d'Ottawa), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ottaw ...

in 1989. There he received a diploma in international relations and was also accredited as an assistant professor. At the same time he served as a consultant to the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). In 1990, while still living in Canada, he founded the Angolan Democratic Forum, a political party based on his views and philosophy. In 1992, President

José Eduardo dos Santos José Eduardo dos Santos (; 28 August 1942 – 8 July 2022) was the president of Angola from 1979 to 2017. As president, dos Santos was also the commander-in-chief of the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA) and president of the People's Movement for ...

invited Chikoti to return to Angola and serve in the

Angolan Government The Cabinet of Angola is the chief executive body of the Republic of Angola. References External linksgoverno.gov.ao(in Portuguese) Cabinet Angolan ministers Ministers Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , imag ...

as Deputy Minister of External Relations. In 1994, he was formally appointed ambassador in the Angolan diplomatic corps. He has represented the Angolan government at a number of international conferences and summits. He also headed the Angolan delegation to several sessions of the U.S.-Angola Bilateral Consultative Commission in

Luanda Luanda () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city in Angola. It is Angola's primary port, and its major Angola#Economy, industrial, Angola#Culture, cultural and Angola#Demographics, urban centre. Located on Angola's northern Atl ...

and

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in 1999-2000. A decade after entering the government, he is one of the longest serving senior officials. Chikoti was one of the first members of UNITA who traveled to Luanda before the Bicesse agreements, implying that the

MPLA The People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola ( pt, Movimento Popular de Libertação de Angola, abbr. MPLA), for some years called the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola – Labour Party (), is an Angolan left-wing, social dem ...

government could find a 'modus vivendi' with members of UNITA who did not agree with Jonas Savimbi. The Angolan Democratic Forum participated in the first elections and obtained a seat in the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

. Chikoti later left his party and joined the MPLA, eventually ascending to its Central Committee. George Chikoti has many critics within UNITA, who considered his approach to the MPLA as a betrayal. Chikoti opposed the

2011 military intervention in Libya On 19 March 2011, a multi-state NATO-led coalition began a military intervention in Libya, to implement United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973, in response to events during the First Libyan Civil War. With ten votes in favour and fiv ...

. He said on 29 March 2011 in Luanda, that the Angolan Government defends dialogue for the resolution of the

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...

n deadlock instead of a military intervention. Speaking to the press about the current international matters, Chikoti said that any military intervention may contribute to the worsening of the problem.(Republic of Angola (Xyami) blogspot, 29 March 2011)
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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chikoti, Georges Rebelo 1955 births Living people Ambassadors of Angola to Belgium Ambassadors of Angola to the European Union Ambassadors of Angola to Luxembourg Foreign ministers of Angola Université Félix Houphouët-Boigny alumni University of Paris alumni Angolan expatriates in France People from Huambo Province 21st-century Angolan politicians 21st-century diplomats

Early life and education

Career

See also

References

External links