Brazzaville, Congo - The president of Congo, Denis Sassou Nguesso, on Friday on Friday described the death of Kenya's 2004 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Wangari Maathai, as "a great loss for Africa and Congo Basin countries".

"It was this lady who advocated a cause in Africa that has now become a global issue. This cause is part of the international debate on the question of the future of the world," he said in Brazzaville.

Maathai, 71, was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the forests in the Congo Basin in 2005 on the recommendation of President Nguesso.

"This year we have the Durban conference, next year we will have Rio+20 and beyond; there, is of course, Bali. So you see that this voice will be missed in the world because she was always listened to," he added.

According to him, it is thanks to Wangari that countries have set up a fund for the Congo Basin.

The first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, Maathai was internationally known for her fight for the environment and human rights.

A former Deputy Minister of Environment of Kenya, she created the Green Belt Movement in 1977, which has succeeded in planting over 40 million trees.

Maathai died last Sunday in Nairobi, Kenya's capital, from cancer.

Pana 02/10/2011