New Guinean President Assumes Office

New Guinean President Assumes Office

Guinea 's first freely elected president, Alpha Conde, has been sworn in, as citizens of the country hoped his leadership would turn a page on five decades of political uncertainty.

Conde, a veteran opposition leader, took his oath on Tuesday, in a ceremony attended by several African heads of state, including South Africa and regional neighbours Guinea Bissau, Mali, Sierra Leone , Liberia and Senegal .

He has promised to unify the country and ensure its economic growth.

Alpha Conde, said he hopes to unify his ethnically-divided country in the same way that Nelson Mandela brought South Africa together after apartheid.

Conde was elected in a November 7 election, billed as the country's first free vote and which ended nearly two years of military rule after the death of President Lansana Conte.

Its result, however, triggered several days of violence between supporters of Conde's rival, Cellou Dalein Diallo and Guinea 's security forces.

Diallo conceded defeat but insisted the election was marred by fraud and that thousands of his mostly ethnic Peul supporters were chased from their voting constituencies by Conde's backers, who include many ethnic Malinke.

The election has been held up by the UN and others as an example in democracy for African neighbours including Cote d'Ivoire , where a dispute over an election on November 28 has pushed it to the brink of renewed civil war.

Guinea is the world's biggest exporter of bauxite, the raw material in aluminium and it has iron ore deposits that have drawn billions of dollars in planned investments from companies like Rio Tinto and Vale.

High expectations

"We are here to witness the rebirth of Guinea , it is time to end the reign of impunity in our country," said General Sekouba Konate , Guinea 's former junta leader who paved the way to the vote.

"The work starts now. Food independence in three years, the fight against corruption and theft of public funds, all of this will require profound reform," said Yero Balde, an economist, speaking of the challenges facing Conde.

"I have hope, a lot of hope, I know that things will change in this country because Alpha has promised it," said Moumouni Konate, an unemployed former micro-lending agent in the seaside capital of Conakry .

Mining companies are eager to see Conde's choices for key cabinet posts, particularly for head of the mines ministry, amid a series of ongoing contract disputes and huge joint venture deals that require ratification.

Mining makes up roughly 80 per cent of Guinea 's currency receipts, but revenues have fallen sharply in recent years to less than 150 million dollars per year from about 200 million dollars in the 1980s and 1990s.

NAN/Yinka