Congo-Brazzaville minister dies
2009-07-06 08:50
Brazzaville - Congo-Brazzaville's hydrocarbons minister has died while in Paris, the government said in a statement on Sunday without specifying the cause.
"The government of the republic announces with deep sadness to the Congolese people the death of his excellency Jean-Baptiste Tati Loutard," said the statement read on public media.
The 70-year-old minister died on Saturday in Paris, it added.
A governmental source said he was flown to the French capital three weeks ago to receive treatment at a hospital. The source refused to comment on the nature of the illness.
Tati Loutard, who had also taught literature at a Brazzaville university, served as a minister several times in the 1980s and 1990s. He had led the hydrocarbons ministry for the last 10 years.