Not bad for a nation that was in the news for all the wrong reasons until fairly recently. But the tide is turning and Mr Kragbé is pursuing a programme aimed at enticing investors back, diversifying the economy and kick-starting the growth of the knowledge sector with the establishment of the Village des Technologies de l’Information et de la Biotechnologie (VITIB) – a free trade zone (FTZ) for biotechnology and information and communication technology companies.

He has also been pivotal in creating the essential administrative and fiscal structure for the development of the FTZ, which has been approved by parliament through the Free Trade Zone Act.

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Mr Kragbé has been in his current post since November 2006, has been High Commissioner of the Free Trade Zone of Biotechnology and Information Technology since 2004, and senior adviser to the president since 2000. He has an MBA from State University of New York.

Active internationally, he has also led the team working to show foreign investors that partnering with VITIB will be mutually beneficial. And the work has paid off, with companies from India, China, UAE and South Africa already collaborating with VITIB.

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