What: The African Union Financial Institutions Consultative Forum will examine avenues to accelerate the establishment of the institutions, which are key to accelerate regional integration and socio-economic development and play a key role in the mobilisation of resources and management of financial sector. 

When: 13- 15 December 2023

Where: Intercontinental Hotel, Lusaka, Zambia.

You can follow all the discussions online on:

https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0kceyvqjkjE9N-l5OAkeUXrJY7oc5R0xM6

The Conference will also be broadcast live on AU digital platforms. Twitter. Facebook. Livestream. A recording will also be availed on AU YouTube channel.

Who: The meeting will gather participants from the African Union, Ministries of Finance, Central Banks, African Union Organs and Specialised Agencies, Regional Economic Communities, Association of African Central Banks, African Securities Exchanges Association, and development partners.

Background information:

The Forum will examine the economic and political challenges impeding the Member States ability to sign and ratify legal instruments establishing the financial institutions, constraints that restrain the continent to collectively pool their sovereignty in order to mutualise their efforts and resources for the establishment the AUFIs. The forum will also formulate a strategy to generate the much-needed consensus and enhanced political will on key issues, and galvanize the momentum towards the establishment of the AUFIs.

The dynamics in the global economic and financial structures continue to present challenges that threaten the macroeconomic stability, economic growth, and sustainable development in Africa. The continent has taken on various economic and political integration initiatives, such as trade promotion, acceleration of inclusive growth and sustainable development to minimize the impact of the resulting instability. While trade integration has received significant attention and made great strides over the years, financial integration has progressed slowly.

In 2009 and 2014, the legal instruments for the establishment of the African Investment Bank (AIB) and the African Monetary Fund (AMF) were adopted respectively. However, none of the financial institutions has reached the requisite number of ratifications to enter into force. The inadequate funding for establishing the African Union Financial Institutions has been detrimental to the operationalization of the African Monetary Institutes, which is the first step toward the establishment of the African Central Bank (ACB). The urgency to expedite the establishment of the African Union Financial Institutions has been underscored by the changing global economic landscape due to the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and insecurity which also calls for the revision of the legal instruments establishing the AU Financial Institutions.

Read about the progress about the establishment of the AU Financial Institutions here.

For more details, visit - https://au.int/en/financial-institutions

For further information, please contact:

Ms. Doreen Apollos | Communication | Directorate of Information and Communication| African Union Commission | E-mail ApollosD@africa-union.org 

Information and Communication Directorate, African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@africa-union.org 
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