Addis Ababa, 10 January 2018– the 4th Meeting of the Strategic Task Force for the Implementation of the 2050 Africa’s Integrated Maritime (AIM) Strategy met from 8 to 10 August 2018 at the African Union (AU) Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to consider and validate the Draft Annexes to the ‘African Charter on Maritime Security and Safety and Development in Africa (“Lomé Charter”).

Amb. (Dr.) Namira Negm, Legal Counsel of the African Union Commission, in her opening remarks, welcomed delegations from Member States to the 4th Meeting of the Strategic Task Force for the Implementation of the 2050 AIM Strategy and reiterated its mandate pursuant to Executive Council Decision EX.CL/Dec.822 (XXV) adopted at its Twenty-Fifth Ordinary Session held in June 2014 in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, which established the Strategic Task Force with a mandate to consider the technical details of the 2050 Africa’s Integrated Maritime (AIM) Strategy and propose a road map for the incremental implementation of the strategy in conformity with International Maritime Law. She has recalled what the task force achieved in the Task Force until now, including the finalization of the first reading of the annexes to the Lomé Charter. She has also stated that the current Session should speed up preliminary stage of finalization of the Annexes to forward them to the relevant STC for consideration before adoption by the policy organs.

The Chair of the Meeting (the Republic of Togo) expressed his appreciation for the OLC for the efforts extended to finalize the Draft annexes and has reaffirmed the invitation by the Government of Togo to host the meetings of the policy organs that will adopt the Annexes to the Lomé Charter after they are finalized by the Technical Committees.
Member States agreed that the Republic of Togo continue chairing the Task Force until the finalization of the Annexes to the Lomé Charter.

The three-day meeting adopted the Draft Agenda, considered and adopted the Report of last meeting as well as finalization and validation of the Draft Annexes to the Lomé Charter, which was coordinated by the Office of the Legal Counsel as Secretariat and was attended by Members of the Open-ended Strategic Task Force composed of AU Member States and Regional Economic Communities (RECs) as well as AUC Departments.

The meeting considered the eight (8) Annexes on different aspects of the Lomé Charter and made technical revisions to the ‘Zero’ Draft Annexes to the Lomé Charter, aiming at bringing practical way forward to the implementation of the Lomé Charter.

Media contact:
Esther Azaa Tankou | Head of Information Division | Tel: (251) 911361185 | E-mail: yamboue@africa-union.org

For further information:
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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