Alexandre Sambat (4 October 1948''Les Élites africaines''
page 385. – 19 September 1998James Morrison
"Embassy Row"
''The Washington Times'', 22 September 1998.) was a

Gabon Gabon ( ; ), officially the Gabonese Republic (), is a country on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa, on the equator, bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo to the east and south, and ...

ese politician and diplomat. He was Gabon's Ambassador to the United States from 1991List of Gabonese ambassadors to the United States
US Department of State. to 1993 and then joined the opposition in Gabon, standing unsuccessfully as a candidate in the December 1993 presidential election. After that election, he served in the government until his death in 1998. Born in

Makokou Makokou is the regional capital of the Ogooué-Ivindo province in Gabon. Its coordinates are . Its altitude is 308 m. Its population in 2004 is around 16,600. The city lies on the Ivindo River and the N4 road. It grew around iron ore mini ...

, Sambat became a

chemical engineer A chemical engineer is a professional equipped with the knowledge of chemistry and other basic sciences who works principally in the chemical industry to convert basic raw materials into a variety of Product (chemistry), products and deals with ...

. He was Minister of National Education until being appointed as Minister of State for Tourism, Leisure, and National Parks on 18 November 1987. He was subsequently appointed as Ambassador to the United States on 26 April 1991 and presented his credentials on 11 June 1991. A composition by Sambat, the "World Peace Song", premiered in January 1992; Sambat sang and played keyboard during the performance, which was characterized by a "bright, melodic refrain". Its lyrics were in both English and French. After the 1993 election, he was again included in the government; as of 1995 he was Minister of Human Rights. He was the only member of the opposition included in the government that was named on 28 January 1997; on that occasion he was appointed as Minister of Youth, Sports, and Leisure. Sambat remained Minister of Youth and Sports until he died of an aneurysm at a

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

hospital in September 1998. He was succeeded as Minister of Youth and Sports by Pierre Emboni.''Jeune Afrique économie'', Issues 272-277
(1998), page 117 .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sambat, Alexandre 1948 births 1998 deaths Ambassadors of Gabon to the United States Education ministers of Gabon Human rights ministers of Gabon Sports ministers of Gabon Youth ministers of Gabon People from Ogooué-Ivindo Province