The African Union 5^th Mid-Year Coordination Meeting, MYCM, concluded on 16^th July with the adoption of a Declaration by the Heads of State and Government representing the Bureau of the Assembly of the African Union, and Chairpersons of the eight (8) Regional Economic Communities (RECs), and the Regional Mechanisms (RMs). The declaration emphasises on the need to hasten Africa's integration process to tackle the challenges caused by globalization, and the importance of the harmonization of national and regional policies to promote socio-economic development.

The integration agenda has reported successes through the coordination efforts between the African Union, RECs, RMs and member states, as evidenced in joint actions, including:

• The cessation of hostilities agreement in Ethiopia under the joint auspices of the AU and IGAD, which inspired the two organizations in the recent adoption of the joint roadmap on the Sudanese crisis.
• The inter-REC cooperation initiative between ECCAS and ECOWAS on maritime security.
• The efforts at resolving the long crisis in the Great Lakes where, under the aegis of the AU, a quadripartite summit brought together in Luanda, the East African Community (EAC), the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
• The contribution of AUDA-NEPAD to strengthening infrastructure, combating climate change, and food security.
• The real-time information exchange platform between RECs/RMs, Member States and the AU Commission developed in the context of conflict prevention and management on the continent.

H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission while lauding the progress, noted that the ongoing process of the division of labour between the African Union, the RECs, Regional Mechanisms, and Member States will institutionalize this coordination and make it more formal, adding that for optimal functionality, the coordination will need to broaden its scope to include continental financial institutions, think tanks and research centres, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, civil society and the private sector.

He however stated that the integration process would be hampered by structural constraints such as the funding gap for the implementation of the infrastructure programme at the continental level, the deterioration of the peace and security situation in Africa, the delays in transforming productive structures in a logic that includes women and youth as entrepreneurs of progress and as a protective shield against extremism and terrorism, and the delay in the ratification of the Protocol on the free movement of persons and goods. He urged member states to ratify the Protocol to the Treaty Establishing the African Economic Community Relating to Free Movement of Persons, Right of Residence and Right of Establishment which needs fifteen (15) ratifications to come into force. “In this regard, I reiterate my appeal to the current Presidents of the regional economic communities who have not yet done so, to proceed with ratifications at the level of their respective regions. We urgently need to get out of this flagrant contradiction of wanting free trade and reject the implementation of the free movement of people and goods.” Read the full statement here.

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) has recorded significant progress, reinforcing the conviction that the continental common market is a great opportunity to achieve the pan-African vision of an "integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa". With efforts geared towards the acceleration of the AfCFTA, the African Union theme for year 2023, closing the infrastructure development gap is key to attracting investment and boosting intra-African trade. H.E. Azali Assoumani, President of the Union of The Comoros and Chairperson of the African Union for 2023, noted that the development of maritime transport is one of the key factors for the success of Africa's economic integration.

“Indeed, intra-African trade is mainly carried out by road and sea. It is now established that the implementation of the AfCFTA could double sea freight, from 58 to 131.5 million tonnes. The island states of Africa, despite their structural fragilities, are full of opportunities and potential, given the vastness of their maritime space.”

President Assoumani said African ministers recognize the critical importance of ocean conservation, climate action, and the sustainable development of coastal communities, and that in June 2023, they adopted the Moroni Declaration for Ocean and Climate Action in Africa, to advance the integration in continental and regional policies, strategies and frameworks in support of the Great Blue Wall initiative for a collective approach to foster resilience and climate change mitigation and adaptation and as a leverage for a sustainable Blue Economy in Africa. Read the full statement here.

H.E. William Ruto, President of the Republic of Kenya observed that the progress made in implementing the Africa Continental Free Trade Area is the most compelling signal that African integration is unstoppable, and that it will open doors for unprecedented socio-economic transformation. He further emphasised on the need for member states to implement the African Union decision on financing of the Union to move towards sufficient, predictable, and reliable self-financing mechanism.

“We must capitalise on the institutional reform momentum at the AU to pursue the complete development of effective capacity to deliver Pan-African transformation. To do this, self-reliance is essential, and a fit-for- purpose institutional architecture. Over 60% of our programmes budget is financed by overseas partners. The demands of our challenging time require an AU that can pursue multiple urgent and critical interventions using internally mobilised resources. The Pan-African movement has always been about sovereignty and agency, first and foremost. Chronic dependence on well-meaning partners is starkly inconsistent with this aspiration.” Read the full statement here.

H.E. Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations noted that the renewed conflict and extremist terrorism lead to lost decades of development and millions of displaced persons and refugees, leaving a generation of young people and women, with the anxiety of a tortured present and a deeply uncertain future. She called for accelerated action by African leaders.

“Our world continues to face unprecedented crises from the socio-economic impacts of Covid-19, a climate emergency, and the knock-on effects of the war in Ukraine. None of us needs reminding that Africa played no part in creating any of these challenges. Unmet commitments by the international community to financing, climate action and adequate humanitarian responses have further aggravated the obstacles to the efforts made by Africa and its leaders to implement Agenda 2063.” Read the full statement here.

The Mid-Year Coordination Meeting was conceptualized in 2017 as the principal forum for the AU and Regional Economic Communities (RECs) to align their work and coordinate the implementation of the continental integration agenda, replacing the June/ July summits. It is a meeting between the bureau of the AU Assembly and Regional Economic Communities (RECs), with the participation of the Chairpersons of RECs, the AU Commission and Regional Mechanisms (RMs).

In January 2017, the AU Heads of State and Government made two key decisions:

• To ensure a clear division of labour and effective collaboration between the African Union, the Regional Economic Communities (RECs), the Regional Mechanisms (RMs), and the Member States, in line with the principle of subsidiarity.
• In place of the June/July Summit, the Bureau of the African Union Assembly to hold a coordination meeting with the RECs, with the participation of the Chairpersons of the RECs, the AUC and RMs.

Learn more about the meeting here.

For further information, please contact:

Mrs. Wynne Musabayana| Head of Communication| Information and Communication Directorate| African Union Commission | E-mail:MusabayanaW@africa-union.org |Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Mr. Molalet Tsedeke| Information and Communication Directorate | African Union Commission | Tel: +251 115 517 700 | E-mail:Molalett@africa-union.org| Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.