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Statement by H.E. Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, Chairperson of the African Union Commission on the occasion of the Celebration of Africa Environment Day and Wangari Maathai Day, March 3, 2013

As envisaged by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, the celebration of the Africa Environment Day and Wangari Maathai Day provides us with an opportunity to review and critically analyze our activities in the realms of sustainable development. It is the time of the year when we, as individuals, communities and countries, can re-examine our footprints on the environment, to give ourselves a sense of our impact on the global environment at large and more so on the lives of the future generations who would be depending on the environmental resources whose services we are enjoying today.
The celebration affords us the chance to re-dedicate ourselves to the principles of environmental conservation and sustainable development and to emulate the legacy of the late Prof. Wangari Maathai, who devoted all her life promoting ecosystem conservation and the preservation of biological diversity. In addition, she supported sustainable development efforts and women-empowerment in Africa in particular, and the world in general.
The African continent continues to endure serious environmental and sustainable development challenges. The unfolding phenomena of climate change, biodiversity depletion, desertification, land degradation and irrational use of finite natural resources remain serious risks for Africa as they pose real impediments to her sustainable development efforts. In unison, we must renew our collective resolve to overcome these challenges and to ensure a better future for generations of Africans yet unborn. The road would be difficult, wrought with numerous obstacles, but is reachable. On her march towards sustainable development, Africa will need more integrated approaches at both regional and national levels considering the three pillars of sustainable development: economic, social and environmental.
Sustainable environmental management is fundamental to the pursuit of food security, peace, security, and stability in Africa. A lot of the crises happening currently on the continent, be they droughts, armed conflicts, or other natural disasters, are exacerbated by environmental deterioration. To address the twin effects of climate change and desertification, Africa is bracing itself to devote undiluted attention to integrate sustainable environmental management into the mainstream development policies at both regional and national levels.
The celebration this year is of particular significance, taking place against a backdrop of key developments both at the level of the African continent and at the global level as well. This year marks the 50th Anniversary of our continental organization, OUA/AU. Africa, its citizens, and her friends around the world will be celebrating the decolonization of the continent and the tremendous achievements realized in the fields of socio-economic, political and environmental development as well the integration efforts of the African continent. The theme for the Golden Jubilee celebration is: Pan Africanism and African Renaissance. This theme underscores the importance of African countries to intensify work in cohesion and solidarity to preserve and promote their common values and heritage, including environment and natural resources. The concept of African Renaissance is built on the conviction that African people and nations can overcome the current challenges confronting the continent and achieve cultural, scientific, economic, environmental, and political renewal.
The recent United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, commonly referred to as Rio+20, marked 20 years of global efforts to strike a balance between human development and environmental sustainability. It emphasized the need to ensure that human development is holistic, encompassing economic, social, and environmental dimensions. One of concepts embraced and endorsed at the Rio+20 Summit was the ‘green economy’. This development model has been designed to put the global economy on a sustainable path, in the process mitigating the impact of climate change, generating jobs and wealth, reducing poverty, and ensuring food security especially in developing countries.
The concept of the green economy has gained currency to a large extent because it promises to provide a response to the multiple crises that the world has been facing in recent years –the climate, food and economic crises – with an alternative paradigm that offers the promise of growth while protecting the earth’s ecosystems and, in turn, contributing to poverty alleviation. In this sense, the transition to a green economy will entail moving away from the production and consumption patterns that tend to exacerbate the difficult conditions of existence in many parts of the developing world.
We in Africa subscribe to basic principles and ideals of the green economy. It is a concept we believe can offer the African continent and other developing regions of the world alternative approaches to development which seeks to integrate economic development with environment, human well-being, and socially-inclusive growth, thereby mitigating the risks which arise from environmental degradation. The African continent is in a unique position and is well-placed to fashion new development pathways that are more sustainable than those taken elsewhere.
The imperative for Africa to pursue the green economy model is clear, considering the fact that many African economies are heavily dependent on natural resources to fuel economic growth. Agriculture, forestry and fishing, mining and quarrying, and oil and natural gas are crucial contributors to the GDP of many African economies.
While African economies are still heavily dependent on natural resources, they have started to appreciate the incentives of diversification. Domestic industries in most of these economies are biased towards natural resources (e.g. mining), and international trade is also heavily natural resource- based. Irrational use of these resources, in pursuit of economic development, can seriously disrupt economic and social growth in the long term.
Besides the environmental and economic arguments in favour of African countries’ need to adopt a green economy model, there is a strong social argument too. A large portion of the African population, especially the rural population, is directly dependent on the natural environment for their sustenance and livelihoods. Thus, the conservation of the continent’s natural resources is of paramount importance to these populations. Africa’s transition to green economy thus has economic as well as social dimensions and implications.
To make the celebration wholesome, it would be befitting to pay due attention to the environmental development dimension of the continent. As noted earlier Africa depends to a very large extend on the utilization of the environment and its resources to foster economic and social development. The 50th Anniversary is, therefore, expected to help us to underpin the centrality of the environment and natural resources in Africa’s growth trajectory and renaissance efforts based on the principles of sustainable development.
The struggle to decolonize Africa was not influenced only by the desire of Africans to gain political freedom and the right for self-determination but it was also about having the right to control and sustainably utilize Africa’s vast endowment of natural resources and ecosystems. It is therefore imperative that we jealously and steadfastly safeguard our environment to ensure our economic, social and environmental survival into the future. This has to happen to make Africa competitive in the global scheme of things.
It is fundamental not to decouple and downplay the strong linkage between the environment and Africa’s performance since the end of colonialism on the continent. Thus, it is inspirational that the theme chosen for the commemoration of the Africa Environment Day and the Wangari Maathai Day for 2013 is: “Partnership for Africa’s Transition to Green Economy in Support of African Renaissance”.
The commemoration of the Africa Environment Day and Wangari Maathai Day offers us with an opportune moment to demonstrate Africa’s appreciation of the importance to opt for green and sustainable paths to development.
I wish to take this opportunity to salute the Government and the people of the Republic of Tunisia for responding to the call made by the 14th Session of the African Ministerial Conference in September 2012 in Arusha, Tanzania, to host the Africa Environment Day and Wangari Maathai Day. The offer to host the celebrations is a clear manifestation of Tunisia’s unflinching commitment to the ideals of sustainable environmental management. We are grateful to the AU Member States, Regional Economic Communities, the UN Economic Commission for Africa, the African Development Bank, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the Greenbelt Movement for their longstanding support and collaboration in organizing the Africa Environment Day and Wangari Maathai celebration. We are equally thankful to the secretariats of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the United Convention to Combat Desertification, and the Convention on Biological Diversity for their cooperation.
I wish you all wonderful and memorable celebration of Africa Environment Day and Wangari Maathai Day. May God Bless Africa.

Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma
Chairperson
African Union Commission

STATEMENT BY THE COMMISSIONER FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY, H.E. MRS. Fatima HARAM ACYL FOR THE 5TH CAMI BUREAU MEETING, Nairobi, Kenya, 13 February, 2013

Honorable Ministers, Members of the Bureau,

Representatives of Regional Economic Communities,

Representatives of International Organizations

Distinguished Delegates,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

On behalf of Her Excellency Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union, I would like to welcome you all to this 5th Bureau Meeting of the AU Conference of African Ministers of Industry (CAMI).

Let me first of all thank the Kenyan Government for accepting to host this 5th Bureau meeting, for the warm welcome and facilities granted to us for a successful meeting. Allow me to also express my sincere appreciation to our development partners, namely, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), and the African Development Bank (AfDB) for their continued support to our common goal of achieving an industrialized Africa.

Distinguished Members of the Bureau
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Since the last CAMI Bureau meeting held in Vienna, we have collaborated with UNIDO and UNECA to organize for the first time on the premises of the African Union Headquarters, the African Industrialization Day on the theme of the AU Summit of 2012, “Boosting Intra-African Trade”. We thank our Member States and the private sector from East and Central Africa for responding to our invitation at such short notice, to reflect with us on the prospects and challenges of Industrialization on our continent.

Advocacy on Industrialization for Africa’s sustainable development has reached an important level. As many of you are aware, a Joint Conference of AU and UNECA Ministers of Finance and Planning will meet next month under the theme of Industrialization. It will be an opportunity to continue to advocate for Member States to invest in their industrialization agenda, especially at a time when we are preparing for the Post-2015 agenda, which should include development indicators that are linked to job creation, skills development, tertiary and technical education in order to spur innovation and economic growth from the youthful population of our continent. In this regard, we are extremely proud to learn that Kenya and other countries in East Africa are leading in the ICT revolution such as mobile banking, mobile lending and savings, linking people in the urban and rural areas and indeed across generations. We commend your efforts towards regional integration, evidenced by the importance that you attach to regional industrial policy. Your success story and others’ milestones and achievements can be shared for the benefit of the continent. At the end of the day, the mandate that Heads of State and Government have given to the Ministers of Industry is to forge ahead with the implementation of the Accelerated Industrialization Strategy for Africa. It is a momentous task, but my belief is that Rome was not built in one day. We need your personal commitment to make progress on mobilizing resources for the implementation of AIDA.
Excellencies
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,
It has come to my attention during the short period that I have been with the Commission that there are efforts being made to implement AIDA. Our partners UNECA and UNIDO are all making important contributions amongst other agencies, under the leadership of RECs and Member States. A concrete example of a successful pilot project is the Investment Monitoring Platform, which was implemented in 19 countries, in different regions. This project deserves to be highlighted because it provides the embryo of the African Trade Observatory that will enable us to track trade and investment flows in a timely manner based on information gathered by the private sector. It is a project that has been embraced by some of the RECs, such as COMESA, ECOWAS and others. However, the main constraint is the mobilization of sufficient funding to allow all RECs to participate and benefit from the initiative. This is a low hanging fruit that can be harvested if we join hands and decide to act in concert.

As the Commission, our main challenge is our ability to coordinate and monitor the impact of these collective actions, due to limited human resource capacity. That is why the establishment of the Implementation Coordination Unit is a goal that is close to my heart because it will inspire confidence that we are now ready to move forward. We are optimistic that this gap will be addressed during 2013 as it is indeed one of our priorities.

Excellencies
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen
Our meeting today is indeed very important and timely. As you are aware, the 20th Ordinary Session of CAMI has been scheduled for the second week of June 2013, in Nairobi, under the theme “Accelerating Industrialization for Africa within the post 2015 Development Agenda”. It is therefore opportune for us to pave the way to a successful CAMI-20 by discussing strategies that will overcome the challenges facing the implementation of AIDA. We have agreed that resources can be mobilized from different sources. Our belief is that we must make haste slowly. We must be absolutely confident that we have prepared well and that we are putting our best foot forward in our resources mobilization. One of the key questions in this regard is to also reflect on the sustainability issue. It may be possible to fund technical expertise on a short-term basis, which may be good, but we need to build the institutional capacity in the medium and long term. We should also craft an agenda for CAMI-20 that is compelling for your colleagues to attend. We need high level participation and commitment in order to make a difference, as we know it is finally Africa’s turn.

Excellencies

The Year 2013 is a special year for Africa. We will celebrate 50 years of the OAU/AU and in this regard there will be a moment of reflection on the development path we have taken so far, and consider how we can move forward to deliver tangible and visible results. We are fortunate that the work of industry is concrete, where a factory goes up, people get jobs, goods flow across borders and wealth is created. We believe that a united Africa, a prosperous Africa, which is at peace with itself and its neighbours is our common vision as a Union.

I look forward to fruitful deliberations during the course of this meeting.

Thank you for your attention.

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.