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STATEMENT BY H.E MRS. RHODA PEACE TUMUSIIME, THE COMMISIONER FOR RURAL ECONOMY AND AGRICULTURE AFRICAN UNION COMMISSION
read for her by
Dr. Abebe Haile Gabriel, Director for Rural Economy and Agriculture

AT THE SIDE EVENT ON DEVELOPMENT OF AFRICA REGIONAL FLAGSHIP PROGRAMMES FOR THE EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RIO+20 OUTCOMES IN AFRICA
The FIRST UNIVERSAL SESSION OF THE GOVERNING COUNCIL OF UNITED NATIONS ENVIRONMENT PROGRAMME AND GLOBAL MINISTERIAL ENVIRONMENT FORUM

NAIROBI, KENYA, 22 FEBRUARY 2013

Your Excellency Terezya L. Huvisa, Minister of State- Environment, Vice-President’s Office of Tanzania and President of AMCEN
H.E Mrs Christina Figueres, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Dr. Desta Mebratu, UNEP Regional Representative and Deputy Director for Africa
Representatives from AfDB, UNECA, and UNDP
Distinguished Delegates, Partners, Ladies and Gentlemen
My name is Abebe Haile Gabriel. I am the Director for Rural Economy and Agriculture at the African Union Commission. I bring you greetings from Her Excellency Tumusiime Rhoda Peace, Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture who, unfortunately could not be here with us this afternoon but has asked me to represent her.
I have the honour to address you all at the side event on “Development of Africa Regional Flagship Programmes for the Effective Implementation of the Rio+20 outcomes in Africa” in the margins of the UNEP’s First universal session of the Governing Council and Global Ministerial Environment Forum.

Allow me to recall Africa’s legacy at Rio+20 illustrated by a strong commitment, dedication and a clear sense of priorities in order to achieve sustainable development on the Continent. Africa was fully mobilized under the strong leadership by African Heads of State and Government, which resulted, as you know, in the successful presentation and negotiations of Africa’s common position at Rio+20.

I would like to take this opportunity to deliver our appreciation to all partners here in accompanying Africa’s successful participation at Rio+20 and who, once again, are gathered here to support the implementation of its outcomes in Africa.

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen

The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Ban Ki-moon said at Rio+20 Conference, “The speeches are over. Now the work begins.” Indeed, it is time for us to translate our commitments into effective action on the ground in order to build the sustainable future of this Continent.
It gives me tremendous pride to share with you today that Africa has already embarked on its implementation process of the Rio+20 outcomes.

In accordance with the Decision of the 19th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of AU in July 2012, as H.E The President of AMCEN alluded to earlier on, African Ministers of Environment have developed a roadmap for the effective implementation of the Rio+20 outcomes, which includes development of Key Africa Regional Flagship Programmes at the 14th Session of AMCEN in September 2012, in Arusha, Tanzania.

I am pleased to share with you that the recommendations, decisions and messages contained in the AMCEN report were presented at the 20th African Union Summit in January 2013 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and were well received and commended. In particular, the 22nd Ordinary Session of the Executive Council of the AU endorsed the development and implementation of Africa Regional Flagship programmes within the framework of the Rio + 20 Outcomes which relate to Africa.

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen

We have observed the strong political commitments from our leaders in Africa and we have all mandates needed given by our member states for the implementation of the outcomes of Rio+20. Now it is time to develop these Regional Flagship Programmes including clear modalities for implementation as well as monitoring and evaluation of progress on regular basis. This is an important forum for providing guidance on the process leading towards developing and implementing Africa flagship programmes.

I would like to assure you of the full commitment of the African Union Commission in this endeavour and its determination to see this process through. I also would like to call on our partners in Africa and beyond to join and support our efforts to generate positive changes in Africa and make these flagship programmes one of the key milestones in achieving African renaissance in line with the Theme of the 50th Anniversary of OAU, predecessor to AU, which we will mark this year in May.

I thank you for your attention.

AFRICA-SOUTH AMERICA FORUM OF COOPERATION
MINISTERIAL MEETING
21 FEBRUARY 2013
MALABO, EQUATORIAL GUINEA

STATEMENT BY H.E. MR. ERASTUS MWENCHA, DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE AFRICAN UNION COMMISSION

Excellency Minister for Foreign Affairs of Equatorial Guinea
Honorable Ministers,
Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen

I feel greatly honored to be addressing this august body of Foreign Ministers of our two Regions, Africa and Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), gathered here in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, to lay foundation for the building of a strategic inter-regional cooperation.
At the very onset, allow me to convey our deepest appreciation to our host, the President of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, H.E. Mr. Theodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO, as well as the Government and the people of this beautiful country for their warm welcome and the facilities extended to us since our arrival. I also bring greetings from the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E. Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, who for reasons beyond her control, is unable to be at this meeting, but will be joining us later.

You may recall that the Ministerial Session of Africa-South America Forum for Cooperation (ASACOF) convened here in November 2011 in preparation for the 3rd ASA Summit, which was postponed for today.
The outcomes of the above-mentioned meeting were translated into a Joint Communiqué, which paved the way for advancing the cooperation agenda through taking of certain actions, namely the Implementation of Africa-South America Action Plan 2013-2016, setting up of the Presidential Strategic Committee, creating a Working Group mandated to carry out a study on the financing of the Permanent Secretariat, and initiating a process for the establishment of a Trust Fund for the implementation of projects.
That is why, partly, the 3rd ASA Summit, which was scheduled to take place in May 2012 did not convene as preparatory issues were still pending and/or unresolved. It is against this backdrop that a Meeting of the Africa-South America Coordination Mechanism at Ministerial Level was held on the 27th of September 2012, in New York, on the margins of the UN General Assembly.
In attendance, were, among others, Equatorial Guinea, as host of 3rd ASA, Venezuela as host country for the 2nd ASA Summit, Ecuador as President of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and of course the African Union Commission. This meeting gave a new impetus to the preparation process, which translated into the decision to hold this meeting here in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea at this time.

Your Excellencies, I wish to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the ASA Coordination Mechanism, the high officials in Addis Ababa, and the South American side who are working tirelessly to prepare all working documents for this meeting.
As you may be aware, the task ahead of us is threefold:
1) To agree on a Financing Mechanism;
2) Agree on the proposed implementation plan, and
3) Establish all ASA institutional mechanisms required for the financing of ASA project/progammes, as well as the proper functioning of our partnership.
To this end, consultations are still ongoing and we trust that a final document will be ready for your consideration and adoption later today.

At this junction, allow me to contextualize the setting up of this partnership between our two regions. It is known to all of us that this partnership is taking place within the South-South Framework Cooperation and is underpinned by political solidarity and inspired by our shared historical background and common aspirations. The success of our common desire is translated into concrete projects to be realized and areas of mutual interests clearly defined to propel the partnership to greater heights for mutual benefit of our peoples of the two (2) Continents.
These areas of mutual interest include: improving trade and investment prospects between Africa and South America; education; energy & Infrastructure; agriculture, and to foster social justice, inclusive social policies by mainstreaming the effective participation of youths, civil society and gender groups. Both regions recognize the need to join hands in fighting common challenges such as drug trafficking and human smuggling, terrorism in all its forms, piracy, mercenarism, and other transnational organized crime, in order to promote peace & security across the continents. Cooperation programmmes in these areas are vital for the advancement of the broader development of Africa and South America.

From an economic standpoint, the rapid economic progression of both continents has, and will continue to significantly improved trade facilitation. With a combined GDP per Capita (nominal) of about $10,600 in 2010 (compared with $32,007 for North America and $25,434 for Europe), both Africa and South America stand a better chance of increasing its bargaining power and attracting necessary investments. Through our commitment to a multilateral system and articulated policies, the South-South Cooperation has the potential of contributing significantly improving infrastructure, food security, the development of alternative sources of energy and increased use of renewable energy sources and hybrid energy technologies.

Your Excellencies, I am especially elated that this meeting is taking place in the helm of the 50th Anniversary celebrations of the African Union, formerly the Organization for African Unity. We believe this celebration offers an opportunity for both sides to work towards the objective of transformation, which we aspire for in the coming decades. In this regards, ASA as our strategic partner and the Diaspora will play a major role, reflecting our shared background and close ties through their contributions for a better world by engendering peace and prosperity.

May I, on that note, thank the Honorable Ministers for coming to this important meeting and wish this session a successful outcome.

I thank you for your kind attention.

On the occasion of the Africa Industrialization Day
20 November 2012

JOINT MESSAGE By African Union, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa,
United Nations Industrial Development Organisation

H.E. Mrs.Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma
Chairperson
Africa Union Commission (AUC)

Mr. Carlos Lopes,
Under Secretary-General and Executive Secretary,
(UN Economic Commission for Africa)

Mr. Kandeh K. Yumkella
Director-General
United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)

THEME: “Accelerating Industrialization for Boosting Intra-African Trade”

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today, we celebrate the Africa Industrialisation Day in support ofthe economic transformation of Africa. In 1989, when the United Nations General Assembly chose the 20 November to commemorate Africa’s industrialization, it sought to mobilize support for, and reaffirm the international community’s commitment to Africa’s industrial development. More than 20 years later, we can measure both the progress achieved and the efforts that still to be undertaken.

This year’s theme, Accelerating Industrialisation for boosting intra-African trade, is fully in line with the issues discussed during the last two AU sessions of Summits (in January and July 2012). African Industrialisation day will provide an excellent opportunityto discuss, throughout Africa and the World, further steps to accelerate the continent’s trade-related integration.

Most African economies have gradually recovered from the 2008 global financial crisis, but the continent’s weaknesses remain a challenge.Although, in Sub-Saharan Africa, the majority of economies will grow by more than 5% this year, there are many new threats; commodity prices start declining, fuel and food prices have recently soared and the European debt crisis is likely to affect Africa’s exports in the very near future. We know that our current economic structures are fragile, and that they too heavily rely on commodity prices. To sustain our development efforts, we require investment promotion and upgrading of trade capacities and infrastructure. Many economic and political challenges still hamper Africa’s competitiveness. Small and isolated economies cannot efficiently and durably tackle these challenges. Structurally, we need to deepen the integration of African economies.

Indeed, unleashing Africa’s economic potential requires collective and well-coordinated approaches.To this end, the demonstrated determination of African leaders to work together on the dismantlement of trade restrictions is undoubtedly a very positive message for the entire continent. The number of active Preferential Trade Agreements between African countries has rocketed since 2000, attaining 24 in 2012. But except in Eastern Africa, where a common market has been launched in 2010, regional and sub-regional trade facilitation initiatives has so far encountered limited success. Therefore, efforts need to be reinforced at the level of the continent to advance this essential issue. We believe that modest reductions in trade transaction costs can substantially increase trade opportunities in Africa. This is why we support the creation of a Continental Free Trade Area by 2017, as a first and ambitious target towards setting-up an African Common Market, which can help improve economic performance through a large increase in business opportunities, Foreign Direct Investment flows and Tax Revenues. Enhanced business climate, regional chain value and competition frameworks should also help boost intra-African trade, especially for important sectors such as services, finance, tourism and communication.

Yet Africa’s integration cannot be achieved without harmonized policies and monetary regulation, new cross-border security frameworks and the elimination of non-tariff trade barriers. As emphasized in the AUC’s Action Plan for the Accelerated Industrial Development of Africa (AIDA), which involved UNIDO’s and UNECA’s assistance, intra-African trade will also heavily rely on our capacity to fast-track resource mobilization efforts towards catalyzing investment in transport infrastructure and new energy sources in Africa. These burning issues require a strong and urgent commitment from the African community.

Nevertheless, despite the daunting challenges and remaining obstacles, it is crucial to foster Africa’s industrialization, and intra-African trade is the one of the best drivers of change. Therefore, AU, UNECA and UNIDO call for renewed and intensified efforts to strengthen regional trade facilitation initiatives and speed up the establishment of the pan-African free trade area. It is time to make our vision a reality, and turn Africa into a competitive, attractive and integrated economy.

We wish you all an excellent celebration of the 2012 Africa Industrialization Day.

Thank you for your attention.

Welcome Remarks by HE Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma Chairperson of the African Union Commission
Opening session of the 20th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union

Addis Ababa, January 27, 2013
 
Your Excellency Boni Yayi, Chairperson of the African Union and President of the Republic of Benin;

Your Excellency Hailemariam Dessalegn, Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, and our host;

Your Excellencies, Heads of State and Government of the Member States of the African Union;

Your Excellency Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian Authority;

Your Excellency Mr. Ban Ki-Moon, Secretary General of the United Nations;

Your Excellency Vuk Jeremić, President of the UN General Assembly;

Excellencies, Members of the Executive Council and other Ministers present;

Your Excellencies, Heads of AU Organs, and other International agencies

Members of the Diplomatic Corps,

Distinguished invited guests;

Excellencies, members of the Permanent Representatives Committee;

Heads of African Regional Economic Communities and African Union Specialised and Representative offices;

Ladies and Gentlemen

Allow me, on behalf of the Commission, to thank you sincerely for electing us to serve this premier organization of Africa. It is a responsibility, which we pledge to undertake with commitment and diligence.

Of course, let me also express my appreciation to the Prime Minister, Government and people of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, not only for the warm welcome when we assumed duty, but also for providing homely conditions for our stay, and for presenting us with the key to the City of Addis Ababa.

Ma gratitude va aussi au Président de l’Union, Son Excellence Boni Yayi pour tout le soutien qu’il a apporté a la Commission depuis que nous avons pris fonction en octobre dernier.

Let me also take this opportunity to thank the previous Commission led by His Excellency Dr. Jean Ping, for the foundation they have laid.

Your Excellencies, Distinguished guests,

Today we look to the future calmly, confidently and courageously.

These same words were said by the founders of our Union, almost fifty years ago, in this very City of Addis Ababa.

As we look back on the last fifty years, we acknowledge that our first priority was the attainment of the political independence and the eradication of Apartheid. In these causes, the continent rallied together, sacrificed, and pooled its resources and efforts in solidarity with anti-colonial and liberation movements. Under the leadership of the Organisation of African Unity, Africa united around these issues, was of one mind on what to do, and spoke with one voice.

This unity of purpose, sacrifice and solidarity by Africa, which complemented the efforts of liberation movements, led to the decolonization of the continent and the dismantling of Apartheid.

It is, therefore, befitting that the theme of this Summit and year is "Pan-Africanism and African Renaissance". Because the spirit of Pan-Africanism and the ideals of the African Renaissance delivered us to where we are today and must propel us towards an integrated, people-centred, prosperous Africa at peace with itself. It is this spirit and ideals that inspired the adoption of the Lagos Plan of Action in 1980, the Abuja Treaty in 1990 and NEPAD in 2001.

It is therefore appropriate to recall on this august occasion the words of one of the Pan Africanist and freedom fighter from South Africa, Pixley Ka Isaka Seme, who said:
“The African already recognises his anomalous position and desires a change. The brighter day is rising upon Africa. Already I seem to see her chains dissolved; her desert plains red with harvest; her Abyssinia and her Zululand the seats of science and religion, reflecting the glory of the rising sun from the spires of their churches and universities, her Congo and her Gambia whitened with commerce; her crowded cities sending forth the hum of business; and all her sons (and Im adding her daughters) employed in advancing the victories of peace…

Yes, the regeneration of Africa belongs to this new and powerful period”.

We must remain inspired by those words, which were uttered in 1906. The conditions now, and the experiences of the past fifty years, make us believe that indeed that period of the regeneration of Africa belongs to this new and powerful period.

Your Excellencies

What makes us so confident that Africa time has arrived and that we can achieve our dream within fifty years, or even less?

Six of the world’s ten fastest growing economies are African, and the continent has been growing at an average of 5% per annum for over a decade, despite the global financial and economic crisis.

We have a growing, vibrant, resourceful and youthful population, who are being equipped with critical skills that would be necessary to drive Africa’s transformation.

The ICT revolution has been embraced by Africans particularly the youth, which has spurred innovative approaches to information, micro-finance and the mobilisation of rural producers via the mobile telephone.

The expansion of Africa’s middle class, currently estimated at 355 million, is bound to spur developments in a range of areas, including the growth of the private sector and the knowledge economy.

The continent is endowed with rich natural resources, including mineral and marine resources as well as vast arable land. These are critical components in the industrial and agricultural developmental processes that should drive economic growth, trade and social transformation.

We have also institutionalised good governance and accountability in many countries through the African Governance Architecture and with thirty-three (33) countries having participated in the African Peer Review Mechanism. We take this opportunity to congratulate the Panel of Eminent Persons and two newest signatories, the Republic of Chad and Tunisia. We also acknowledge the United Republic of Tanzania and the Republic of Zambia for having also recently subjected themselves to the rigorous process of the APRM.

We also take this opportunity to congratulate the countries who have just had their elections, Sierra Leone and Ghana.

Close to ninety percent of countries in Africa have enjoyed sustained peace and stability during the decade, and continue to do so. At the same time, the continent is continually strengthening its capacity to deal with conflicts.

We must therefore take bold steps and fight for the pride of place in the world, as a global growth pole. We must develop our narrative and challenge conventional thinking and paradigms. We must re-kindle the passion of our founders and our people in Pan Africanism, through unity, self-reliance, integration and solidarity.

Your Excellencies and Distinguished Guests

Optimistic as we are, we are mindful of the enormous challenges that remain.

We cannot over-emphasise the need for peace and security. Without peace and security, no country or region can expect to achieve prosperity for all its citizens.

While we are proud of the progress made in expanding and consolidating peace and security on the continent, we also acknowledge that much still needs to be done to resolve ongoing, renewed and new conflict situations in a number of countries.

The Peace and Security Council will report to the Summit on African Union efforts to address these situations in Somalia, Guinea-Bissau, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Darfur, Comoros, Sudan/South Sudan, Madagascar, Western Sahara and more recently Mali and the Sahel. We must also continue to support those countries who are in post-conflict situations, to consolidate their reconstruction and peace-building efforts.

There is also a resurgence of the tendency of rebel groups attempting to oust democratically elected governments. The Union must remain firm on its stance of no unconstitutional change of government. We must enhance our capacity to defend democratically elected governments and their territorial integrity.

Thus there is a need to accelerate the operationalisation of the African Stand-by Force and whatever other mechanisms, to enable us to have quick response capacity to intervene when the need arises.

At this juncture, we must extend our heartfelt thanks to the international community in general, and the United Nations in particular, for the continued cooperation and support to African efforts to resolving conflicts on the continent.

Your Excellencies, while negotiating peace agreements is an urgent and vital task in resolving conflict, it is just the first step. Sustainable peace and stability can only be guaranteed by comprehensive post-conflict reconstruction and addressing the root causes of conflicts. We will therefore do more to align the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) with the African Governance Architecture (AGA).

We hope that the discussions by the Summit will give impetus, support and further guidance to on-going efforts of the African Union and Regional groups seeking lasting solutions to the conflicts.

Africa remains concerned at the long-standing Middle East question, in particular the issue of Palestine. We call for the granting of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, in accordance with United Nations Resolution 1514 (xv) of 1960, on the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples.

We wish in this regard, to congratulate the Palestinian Authority and the people of Palestine on the recent resolution granting them the status of an Observer State at the UN.

Your Excellencies,

During this and the commemorative summit in May - as we renew our commitment to Pan Africanism and African Renaissance - we shall take time to address some of the other challenges on our transformation path. These not only include old and new threats to peace and security, but also slow progress with diversification of our economies and the need to rapidly increase inter-Africa trade and global market access.

We must also concretise our search for innovative and alternate resource mobilisation strategies, and in the spirit of Pan-Africanism urge those who are better endowed in any area or any resource, to show solidarity to others who may currently be less endowed.

It is a matter of concern to us that our continent, which contributes the least to the harmful carbon emissions that cause global warming into the atmosphere, is the continent most affected by climate change. We wish to call for equity and justice in mitigation, adaptation and governance (and in the funds) of climate change.

Although we have policy frameworks and strategies almost across all the areas critical to our development, we need to considerably strengthen our capacity to implement the decisions. We must therefore ensure that our institutions work effectively and efficiently, and are responsive and concentrate on implementation.

The Union and its organs must also effectively communicate with the African citizenry, different sectors of civil society and the Diaspora, so that we unite and mobilise the continent for its renaissance.

Your Excellencies,
Distinguished Guests

I, like many other Africans, strongly and sincerely believe that Africa’s dream is not only achievable, but can be done in a shorter time.

There are many examples of countries that have successfully transformed in less than fifty years from poor, third world countries to prosperous high-income countries. These countries now have standards of living that rival, or even surpass, those of the developed countries, amongst them are the Gulf States, Singapore, South Korea, Turkey, Malaysia and China.

The massive economic development that has propelled China to become the second largest economy in the world has been on a genesis since the 1970’s. For instance, in 1978 China’s gross domestic product (GDP) was just 147.3 billion US dollars. By 2009 China’s GDP had risen to 4.9 trillion. By last year this figure had reached a phenomenal 7.298 trillion dollars.

In 1978, China’s social and economic indicators were not so different from Africa. For instance, 63 per cent of China’s population lived below the international poverty datum line. By 2007, that figure had fallen to 4 per cent.

So we are filled with optimism and enthusiasm that in the year that we celebrate our 50th anniversary, the continent of hope and opportunity and is on the move. In a range of areas critical to our development, we have taken control of our destiny and have agreed what to do.

Through the sweat and toil, which tills our land daily, we intend to refuel the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Programme (CAADP). We shall utilise this programme to increase agricultural productivity and facilitate for agro-processing, working through the RECs and Member states. Through this programme and associated actions we will guarantee our collective food and nutritional security, so that every child on the continent is fed and better nourished. Ultimately we will register our comparative advantage so that we become a net exporter of food products to the rest of the world.

This will contribute to the empowerment of Africa such that we reclaim our voice towards setting fair and just food prices. In so doing, we will ensure rising incomes for farmers whilst transforming the livelihoods of our populations, especially in rural areas.

To secure decent livelihoods and the free movement of people, goods and services, we must accelerate integration and connectivity. The progress on the implementation of the priority infrastructure projects of PIDA in the areas of transport, energy and ICT is therefore encouraging, with notable advances where domestic resources are being utilised.

Thus Deloitte and Touche noted the trend that “African governments have historically financed a sizeable share of the continent’s infrastructure development on the balance-sheet.” Given the huge scale of our infrastructure backlog, a key component of the PIDA programme, working with the NEPAD Agency and the RECs, is therefore resource mobilisation and diversification of funding models.

The transport corridors envisaged through this initiative will enable young people from Mogadishu to travel to Timbuktu, onwards to Gore Island and enable products to be transported from Cape to Cairo.

Broadband infrastructure will enable our people to connect with each other from the remotest parts of our countries and to access public and business services and opportunities.

Our young entrepreneurs, poets, writers and linguists will populate the African cyber space and shape its content, so as to share and promote our culture, languages, indigenous knowledge and development to enable Africa to compose its own narrative.

Education and skills development is at the heart of our regeneration efforts. The Pan African University and the general expansion of our higher education sector will equip our young people with critical abilities to drive innovation, sciences, entrepreneurship, research, social development and industrialization.

The Conference of Ministers of Interior and other Ministries responsible for Civil Registration and Vital Statistics are hoping that recommendations will be approved in order to address the scandal of the invisibility of millions of Africans whose birth and identities are not recorded anywhere, denying them access to rights and services.

The lack of statistics undermines national planning and service provision, and the lack of accurate and secure population registers undermines security and efforts to establish effective immigration systems that will allows free movement of people of all our countries.

We must thank all the continental Champions of the important programmatic areas of the Union, especially infrastructure, who through their dedication and advocacy help to raise awareness, communicate Africa’s success stories and monitor implementation. Africa needs many more such Champions, from across the length and breadth of the continent and in more diverse areas.

Your Excellencies,

Women constitute more than half of Africa’s population. They give birth to the other half.

Women also make up seventy-five per cent of the agricultural workforce. They constitute the bulk of cross-border traders and still provide for the well-being and social reproduction of families, communities, the workforce and our societies.

The continent has taken many decisions towards the emancipation of women and gender parity, including the declaration of the Decade of Women. All that remains is implementation and we must increase implementation of these decisions. Let me quote President Samora Machel of Mozambique who said:

The emancipation of women is not an act of charity, or the result of humanitarian or compassionate attitude. The liberation of women is a fundamental necessity of the revolution, the guarantee of its continuity and the precondition of its victory.

We have taken steps, Excellencies to enhance coordination of the Regional Economic Communities, as critical building blocks of our Union. The AU Commission will work closely and plan together with the RECs.

We also work closely with the UN Economic Commission for Africa, the African Development Bank and the NEPAD Agency to ensure better coordination of our efforts, building on our different and complementary roles as institutions, in order to advance the African Agenda.

The successful implementation of these continental programmes and efforts, Your Excellencies, will bring our people – young and old, men and women, urban and rural - from the periphery to the centre - as active participants in the renaissance of Africa and as captains of their destiny.

Distinguished Guests

The continental programmes that we spoke about also greatly benefit from support partners from across the globe. Whilst Africa is taking charge of its own destiny, your cooperation and invaluable support is appreciated.

Your Excellencies,
Distinguished guests

During this and the commemorative Summit in May – as we renew our commitment to Pan Africanism and African Renaissance - we should take time to discuss further what more needs to be done to accelerate Africa’s vision of integration, prosperity and peace.

We need to ask whether the economic growth models we are pursuing are likely to lead to sustainable inclusive development for Africa and, if so, at what point? What conditions should we put in place to enable transformational and qualitative change? What are the different, yet complementary roles of the state, the private sector, civil society and the diaspora in our economies?

How do we facilitate the creation of indigenous capital and a viable, vibrant private sector that is not only capable of investing in big local industry, including infrastructure development, but also competing effectively and becoming global champions?

How can Africa harnesses its resources to ensure that it funds and therefore determines its development agenda? How can we strengthen our institutional and other capacities, to ensure implementation of our decisions and policies?

What is it that we have not done, or that we could do differently?

Your Excellencies, these and many other questions need to be asked and candidly answered - in the year of the 50th anniversary - if we are to realise our dream within the coming fifty years.

As we renew the spirit of Pan Africanism and ideals of African renaissance, I would like to quote one of Africa’s writers, Ben Okri, from his book Ways of Being Free:
They tell me that nature is the survival of the fittest. And yet look at how wondrous gold and yellow fishes prosper amongst silent stones of the ocean beds, while sharks continuously prowl the waters in their impossible dreams of oceanic domination and while whales become extinct…

…how many butterflies and iguanas thrive, while elephants turn into endangered species, and while even lions growl in their dwindling solitude.

There is no such thing as a powerless people. There are only those who have not seen and have not used their power and will. It would seem a miraculous feat, but it is possible for the under-valued to help create a beautiful new era in human history. New vision should come from those who suffer most and who love life the most.

It is only by establishing a common destiny and outlook that we can overcome and prosper. In the words of Ben Okri, there is nothing like a powerless people.

Asante Sane
Je vous remercie de votre aimable attention.
Shukran
Mucho obrigado
I thank you