 Your Excellency Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda Who is being represented today by the Vice President, H.E. Major (Rtd) Jessica Alupo.
 Honorable Francis Mwebesa, Minister of Trade Industry and Cooperatives from the Republic of Uganda;
 All Cabinet and State Ministers here Present;
 Your Excellency Cristina Duarte, Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser of the United Nations Secretary-General on Africa;
 Dr. Majoro Grace Kabayo, Secretary General for Pan-African Women Organization (PAWO);
 Members of the Diplomatic Corps;
 The African Women in Processing Representatives;
 Representatives of AU Member states Here Present;
 Representatives of the Regional Economic Communities;
 All Protocols observed;
 Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen;

Good morning,
On behalf of my Commissioner H.E. Francisca Tatchouop Belobe who could not be here today due to reasons beyond her control, let me to thank the Government of the Republic of Uganda, for hosting this year’s Africa Industrialization Week in this beautiful city of Kampala and especially here in Speke Resort Munyonyo. Let me also thank the President of this country H.E. Excellency Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda who is being represented by the Vice President for gracing this event today as we commemorate the Africa Industrialization Day.

Let me also thank the organizing team both from Uganda and the AUC for working very hard and bringing all of us here in Kampala. Special thanks to our partners especially the European Union who have supported us with both financial and technical support. I wish also to recognize our partners, UNIDO, UNECA, AFREXIMBANK, ITC, UNOSAA, OECD, ImpactHER, Expertise France, PAWO and many others for their support towards the organization of this Year’s Africa Industrialization Week.

The Day was set aside by the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in 1989 and was also endorsed by the United Nations in the same year. The day was set aside to raise awareness about the importance of Africa’s industrialization and look at how the continent can accelerate structural transformation.

This Year’s African Industrialization Week is being held under the theme: "Transforming Africa’s Economy through Sustainable Industrialization, Regional Integration and Innovation”

This year’s theme aligns well with Africa’s development aspirations as expounded in the Agenda 2063 especially as we strive to build and integrated our continent especially through the single market, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). This market requires that we build resilient and inclusive industries that will supply it with finished and semifinished products at the same time creating jobs for our youth and women.

On this note, Your Excellency, you may wish to note that this year’s Africa Industrialization week has had side events dedicated to African Women in Processing (AWIP) as well as Innovative African Youths that are showcasing their ideas and inventions which if upscaled will help the continent develop the industries we need.

Your Excellency, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

The African Union values the role of women in industrialization of the continent. Women play a critical role in Africa's industrialization as entrepreneurs, laborers, and decision-makers, particularly in sectors like agriculture, processing, and textiles. Their participation is essential for economic growth, job creation, and inclusive development, but they face challenges such as limited access to finance and market opportunities. Supporting women through skills development, policy, and financial access is crucial to accelerating industrialization across the continent.

This is why in 2022 the Heads of state and Government during the Niamey Summit requested the African Union Commission to come up with the African Women in Processing (AWIP). AWIP is meant to bridge the gender gap in Manufacturing of the continent. I am happy to learn that Uganda is a pioneer in terms of moving forward with dedicated special economic zones for women entrepreneurs. It is my hope that other AU Member States will follow suit to support their women entrepreneurs to exploit opportunities in the AfCFTA market and beyond.

Apart from this, we realize that for us to catch up with the rest of the world we need innovative minds especially the youth. The youth are the largest constituent of our population on our continent with the United Nations estimates indicating that over 70% of the African population being below 30. Youth, innovation, and industrialization in Africa are interconnected, with the continent's large and dynamic young population holding the key to driving economic growth through innovative solutions. I am happy that for the first time since the Industrialization week was launched in 2018 we have dedicated parallel sessions for the youth under the African Youth Startup Forum. By harnessing emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, combined with innovation and entrepreneurship, Africa’s youth can effectively address Africa’s inequality and poverty.

Your Excellency, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,
As we industrialize, let us remember that some of the global challenges we are currently facing such global warming are because of some mistakes of the past as well as of the present where the environment was not considered in the industrialization process. As a continent with an abundance of renewable energy resources and critical minerals, we have the potential to develop new green value chains for products like green hydrogen and electric vehicles. Green technologies offer Africa a unique opportunity to industrialize sustainably, developing industries that are both economically competitive and environmentally sound.

As we build our industries let us also ensure that we build Regional Value Chains (RVCs). With RVCs we will be able to boost Africa’s Participation in Global Value Chains, create jobs, boosting incomes as well as increasing productivity.

Your Excellency, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,
As I conclude my remarks this morning I wish to reiterate that as a continent, Industrialization remains key to the development of the continent. We therefore to fastrack our industrialization drive and catch up with the rest of the world, supply the AfCFTA market and create jobs for our youth and women. We also need to FastTrack the establishment and operationalization of African Industrialization Fund (AIF) that was put forward during the Niamey Summit to ensure we deal with challenges of access to finance.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Finally let me once again thank You Your Excellency and your Government for hosting this year’s Africa Industrialization Week. Let me also thank members of the organizing team who have worked hard to ensure the success of this gathering. Special thanks should go to our Partners, UNIDO, UNDP, Expertise France ITC, AFREXIMBANK, the EU, the OECD, for their technical as well as financial support towards this event.

Allow me to stop here and wish all the best as we celebrate this year’s Africa Industrialization Day 2025.