The African Union Commission signs Joint Programming Arrangement with Development Partners

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – 10 December 2014 - The African Union Commission (AUC) yesterday signed a Joint Programming Arrangement (JPA) to support the AUC Trade and Industry Program led by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) under Pillar III "Integration, Cooperation and Partnerships" with Development Partners in Addis Ababa.

Four African Union partners: United States Agency for International Development (USAID), European Union (EU), United Kingdom (UK) and Sweden signed this arrangement in order to enhance coordination among partners supporting the AUC in the areas of trade, industry and customs. The overall goal of this JPA is to provide a framework for coordinated dialogue and support for AUC priorities related to development of trade and customs facilitation policies; supporting the Continental Free Trade Area (“CFTA”) negotiations; and enhancement of productive capacities on the Continent as defined in the AUC Strategic Plan 2014-2017.
Speaking on the occasion on behalf of the Partners, the USAID Representative to the African Union, Mr. Glenn Rogers, pointed out that the Joint Programming Arrangement is a milestone in building an inclusive partnership to achieve the envisioned results of the AUC 2014-2017 Strategy in areas related to trade. He mentioned that as the AUC and Partners seek to apply the common principles articulated in the Busan Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation, the Partners commit themselves to coordinate and harmonize their support for the Department of Trade and Industry’s Programmes.

The Commissioner for the Department of Trade and Industry of the African Union Commission, H.E. Fatima Haram Acyl, in her statement, thanked the Partners for their commitment to the success of the DTI’s programmes and confirmed AUC’s engagement towards increasing the effectiveness of development support and building mutual accountability and transparency for all involved in the JPA mechanism.
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For more information, please contact: Mr. James Maringwa, Expert - Trade-Related Results Based Planning - Email: MaringwaJ@africa-union.org

Media contact: Patient Atcho, Department of Trade and Industry – Email: atchop@africa-union.org

For further information contact
Directorate of Information and Communication | African Union Commission I E-mail: dic@african-union.org I Web Site: www.au.int I Addis Ababa | Ethiopia

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