VZCZCXRO8947
RR RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHCO #0617 2251204
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 131204Z AUG 07
FM AMEMBASSY COTONOU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9757
RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RUEHPC/AMEMBASSY LOME 3866
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORP
RUCOWCA/COGARD MIO EUROPE ROTTERDAM NL
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RUCOCGA/COMLANTAREA COGARD PORTSMOUTH VA
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 1141

UNCLAS COTONOU 000617 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPRTMENT FOR AF/W (BANKS) AND AF/RSA 
COGARD MIO EUROPE ROTTERDAME NL FOR LCDR KEITH 
LOME FOR DCM J.A. DIFFILY 
PARIS FOR D'ELIA 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON EAID EINV ETRD EWWT PGOV KHLS PTER BN
SUBJECT: PORT OF COTONOU: UPDATE ON DEMARCHE CONCERNING ISPS CODE 
COMPLIANCE 
 
REF: A) Cotonou 561; B) Cotonou 389 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY. At the request of the Mr. Armand Zinzindohou, 
Minister Delegate for Public Works in the Office of the President, 
the Charge d'Affaires, along with the Millennium Challenge 
Corporation Benin Acting Resident Country Director and the 
Coordinator of the Benin MCA Team, toured the Port of Cotonou along 
with Minister Zinzindohou, the General Director of the Port of 
Cotonou, and several other Government of Benin (GOB) officials on 
August 10, 2007.  The GOB officials, who are clearly very concerned 
about the upcoming August 21 deadline for the Port of Cotonou to 
comply with the minimum requirements of the International Ship and 
Port Security (ISPS) Code (Reftel B), wanted to show USG officials 
evidence of progress made since the July visit of U.S. Coast Guard 
(USCG) Commander Robert Keith (Reftel A). It was evident to the USG 
officials that much progress had been made, particularly with regard 
to fencing, lighting, and access control.  In conversations with the 
Minister Delegate and in a meeting afterward, which was open to the 
press, the Charge d'Affaires expressed appreciation for the great 
effort that the GOB was making and for the progress that had been 
achieved, but emphasized that it would be the USCG which would make 
the final determination regarding the Port of Cotonou's compliance 
with the ISPS code. END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. After a brief meeting at the office of Christophe Aguessy, 
General Director of the Port of Cotonou, Minister Delegate 
Zinzindohou and Mr. Aguessy, along with an entourage of other GOB 
officials, escorted the Charge and the rest of the American 
delegation on a tour of the port. 
At the main entrance of the port, the Minister Delegate personally 
ordered several unauthorized vendors to leave the area, and gave 
detailed instructions on access controls.  Here, as well as on 
several other occasions later on during the tour, he emphasized to 
Port of Cotonou employees the urgency of ISPS compliance and the 
great importance of the Port of Cotonou to the economy of Benin. 
 
¶3. Inside the Port, the Minister Delegate spoke with workers, making 
sure that they were wearing their identification badges or armbands, 
and becoming angry when he came across a group of dock workers 
without identification badges. He engaged in an animated discussion 
with a representative of the transportation workers union, who 
claimed that slow customs inspectors and forwarding agents prevented 
the truck drivers from unloading their vehicles quickly, thus 
causing congestion in the port area.  The union representative 
nevertheless thanked the Minister Delegate and the Port Director for 
their efforts, which he said had made the port safer for members of 
his union. 
 
¶4. The Minister Delegate then took the American delegation all 
around the perimeter of the port, pointing out improvements that had 
been made in fencing, new walls, and lighting.  The Charge 
d'Affaires told the Minister Delegate that significant improvements 
had clearly been made in the last several weeks, particularly in the 
areas of access controls, security, reduced congestion, fencing, and 
lighting. 
 
¶5. COMMENT: The intense personal involvement of Minister Delegate 
Zinzindohou demonstrates the depth of the GOB concern over the 
upcoming ISPS compliance deadline.  While initial compliance efforts 
may have been somewhat lackadaisical, the GOB is clearly trying to 
make up for lost time, and is making a sincere effort to bring the 
Port of Cotonou into full compliance prior to the August 21 
deadline.  The Charge d'Affaires expressed appreciation for these 
efforts, but emphasized that the U.S. Coast Guard would make the 
final determination. 
 
Lauterbach