Addis Ababa, South Africa, January 27, 2018 – “What brings us together on this day is the common goal of working for the transformation of Africa,” H.E Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal and Chairperson of the NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee (HSGOC) stated during the opening session of the HSGOC in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee held its 36th Session on 27 January. In his opening statement, H.E Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of African Union Commission highlighted the fact that NEPAD now works in 52 of the 55 African countries.

The Chairperson of the HSGOC welcomed H.E Emmerson Mnangagwa, President of the Republic of Zimbabwe. President Mnangagwa expressed gratitude to the African Union and its bodies including the NEPAD Agency for their continued support to Zimbabwe. He also remarked that, “Zimbabwe is ready for business with the rest of the continent.”

H.E Macky Sall stated that NEPAD is a true realisation of the vision of its founding fathers in realising the goals of Agenda 2063.

“Areas that need more focus and investment include infrastructure and energy. These must remain priorities for NEPAD, as well as the rural electrification fund that must become a reality. The process of agricultural transformation and growth of 6 per cent per year also remains a priority. The dream of our founding fathers has become a reality in NEPAD under the leadership of Dr Ibrahim Assane Mayaki,” President Sall said.

In his statement, the President of Rwanda, H.E Paul Kagame thanked NEPAD for being forward looking in positioning itself within the African Union even before the current reform was on the agenda. “NEPAD is about the development of our continent – delivering to African citizens. Let us look forward to working together in building a strong organisation for delivery of results on the continent,” President Kagame stated.

The results-based performance report of the NEPAD Agency was presented by the NEPAD Agency’s CEO, Dr Mayaki. During the session, Dr Mayaki gave a presentation on the NEPAD Agency’s Results Based Development Dashboard, which displays the organisation’s results at national, regional and continental levels. He also brought to the fore the application of a territorial approach to development. The dashboard captures the NEPAD Agency’s programmatic results delivery of Agenda 2063.

Also at the session, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Dr Vera Songwe stated that the ECA has been a long standing partner of NEPAD, collaborating in various thematic areas.

The Minister of Works and Transport, Hon. Alpheus !Naruseb, on behalf of H.E Mr Hage Geingob, the President of Namibia, formally accepted Namibia into the NEPAD Presidential Infrastructure Championship. The Presidential Infrastructure Champion Initiative was born out of a proposal by President Zuma to accelerate regional infrastructure development through the political championing of projects.

The Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee session also deliberated on the reform of the NEPAD Agency and its governance model.

In the closing session of the HSGOC, President Sall urged delegates to continue to support NEPAD in its efforts to attain Africa's common development goals.

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Journalists wishing to interview the leadership of the NEPAD Agency during the Summit should submit their requests to Mrs Mwanja Ng'anjo, Senior Communication Officer, at Mwanjan@nepad.org | Tel: +251 904 13 83 48

Journalists wishing to interview the leadership of the AU Commission during the Summit should submit their requests to Mrs Esther Azaa Tankou, Head of Information Division of the AUC, via E-mail: YambouE@africa-union.org / esthertankou@yahoo.com