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Statement by the Presiding Officer of the 2nd Permanent General Assembly of the Economic, Social and Cultural Council of the African Union (ECOSOCC),
Mr. Joseph Chilengi, on the occasion of the Inauguration of the Assembly, Hilton Hotel, Nairobi, Kenya, 22 Dec. 2014

Statement by the Presiding Officer of the 2nd Permanent General Assembly of the Economic, Social and Cultural Council of the African Union (ECOSOCC),
Mr. Joseph Chilengi, on the occasion of the Inauguration of the Assembly, Hilton Hotel, Nairobi, Kenya, 22 Dec. 2014

Your Excellency, Ms. Amina Mohamed, the Foreign Minster of the Republic of Kenya and Member of the AU Executive Council.

Your Excellency, Mr. Erastus Mwencha, the Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission

Honorable Deputy Presiding Officers of ECOSOCC

My Colleagues and Members of the 2nd ECOSOCC General Assembly,

Other Distinguished Representatives of African Civil Society Organizations,

Members of the Diplomatic Corps,

Members of the Press Corps and Fourth Estate,

Invited Guests,

Participants,

Observers,

Ladies and Gentlemen.

First of all, I wish to express our sincere gratitude to the Government and people of Kenya for their kind hospitality and for playing host to this Assembly. Her Excellency, the Foreign Minister for Kenya has observed that Kenya is a second home for all African People. For us in the 2nd Permanent Assembly of ECOSOCC, Kenya is our first home because it is where the Assembly was born. The experience and memory is one that we shall always cherish as we strive for a record of performance that would make Kenya and the larger family of Africa and its Diaspora proud as a testimony to this unique moment.

In the same vein, I would like to thank our Guest of Honor, Her Excellency, the Minster of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Amina Mohammed for deeming it fit to take time from her onerous responsibility and important matters of State to launch this Assembly. We consider this as evidence of the importance that she and the Kenyan Government attach to the project of African Unity and integration and the need to ensure that our developmental processes are anchored on the needs, and aspiration of the ordinary citizens of Africa.

Furthermore, I wish to thank the Deputy Chairperson of the Commission for taking time out of his leave period to be with us toady. His Excellency Mr. Erastus Mwencha is a champion of ECOSOCC. As he indicated in his address, he was with us at the launch of the First Assembly in 2008 and has taken the time to be with us again approximately six years after. It is a sign and expression that ECOSOCC occupies a special place in his heart and that we will always receive his support and assistance and that of the Commission that he stands for.

Your Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen.

I must also congratulate my colleagues in the General Assembly of ECOSOCC for their elections as Honorable Members of the Second ECOSOCC Permanent General Assembly. The qualifications were stringent and several of the elections were keenly contested. Their success in the electoral endeavor was a mark of the trust and confidence that is bestowed on them by the African people. Our honor demands reciprocity in this regard. We must conduct ourselves in a manner that would justify the confidence and trust that the African society has placed in us.

I plead with all Members of the 2nd ECOSOCC General Assembly to approach our onerous task with this sense of responsibility so that we can deliver on the promise of ECOSOCC for the founding fathers of the AU, the wider African people and in particular, the ordinary citizens of the continent and the men and women on the street from which we derive our mandate. As members of the wider African Union family we would normally require parity of treatment with our esteemed colleagues in other commensurate organs in defense of the dignity of the African Civil society community but this 2nd ECOSOCC General Assembly will serve the interests of the wider African people and commit itself to the development and integration project of the African continent.

Your Excellences, Colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I participated in the ECOSOCC Sensitization and Motivation Campaign of August to October 2014 that paved way for this Assembly and the messages I got from them are the same messages that I have got from listening to our Guest of Honor and the Deputy Chairperson of the Commission. The clear message that we are getting is to learn from the past, embrace challenges, work assiduously to project a positive image of ECOSOCC within the African Union family and commit ourselves to the realization of the goals and objectives of the African Union.

I want to assure all and sundry that my colleagues and I have got the messages and we are determined to make Africa proud. This is not the time or place for us in ECOSOCC to unfold the details of our agenda but since we were elected yesterday I have been consulting with my colleagues and sharing with them thoughts on our vision and purpose for ECOSOCC. Details would be unfolded soon as it is our intention to hit the ground running. However, it would be useful to offer some highlights in this context.

Your Excellences, Colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen.

Our first task would be to hold an orientation program for newly elected Members of the 2nd General Assembly, as this is a pre-requisite for role adaptation and effective performance. The previous ECOSOCC Assembly suffered because several members were not too clear on the purpose and function of ECOSOCC, the demands and responsibility of the Organ and its relationship with the Commission and other organs etc. There was also scant knowledge about the rules and regulations of the African Union and the rights and duties of Members. We consider that foundation process as essential and it should last for one whole week. Our desire is that this orientation program should take place in the first week of February 2015 immediately after the January 2015 Summit in Cairo, Egypt or any other suitable country if Egypt cannot accommodate the meeting.

Our second focus would be to mobilize and build grassroots support for AU program and activities and effectively link them with the wishes and aspirations of the African people at the grassroots. In order to do this, ECOSOCC meetings, activities and programs would be rotated among different countries and regions of The African continent. Every meeting or program would be preceded by a day for sensitization and motivation for the African Union. The lesson of the AU Motivation campaign for ECOSOCC elections is that the process must be domesticated and continuous. As part of the project, ECOSOCC would also commit to sensitization in support of Agenda 2063 and the post 2015 development agenda.

Our third and foremost priority would be to operationalize the Sectorial Cluster Committees so that ECOSOCC can perform the policy-making role that it was created to perform. We would also be introducing a business model to support our performance objectives and this will align our strategic plan with commensurate business plans, defined targets and appropriate timelines.

Excellences, Invited Guests, ladies and Gentlemen

In performing our duties, we would be requiring the assistance and support of the Commission. The process of ECOSOCC elections has shown concretely how well the Commission can act in support of ECOSOCC objectives. We wish to thank the Commission and its Chairperson for prioritizing ECOSOCC and giving it the necessary support to convene this Assembly. We are here today partly because the Chairperson, HE Dr. Zuma prioritized ECOSOCC. We wish to thank her most sincerely for such consideration. In this regard, I must also express our appreciation for the contribution of the AU Interdepartmental Committee for Verification and Appraisal o candidates for eligibility that was led by Ambassador Lazarus Kapambwe, Advisor in the Office of the Chairperson.

Significantly, also as someone associated with ECOSOCC for the last eight (8) years, I also want to deeply appreciate the work of the Secretariat in CIDO. The role and importance of ECOSOCC in the African Union today is possible because of the effort and devotion of the CIDO Secretariat. There is a tendency to undervalue this contribution but every honest and sincere person that has been associated with tithe ECOSOCC enterprise would certainly appreciate the work and role of CIDO in making sure that ECOSOCC works well. In appreciating CIDO, we must in particular commend the drive and inspiration of its Director, Dr. Jinmi Adisa, who has been the lantern bearer of the ECOSOCC project. Several of my colleagues spoke about this during the conduct of our elections. His commitment, capability and dedication are rare values that are not normally combined in a single individual. His person and his work remains a source of inspiration and passion for the work of the African Union.

Your Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen.

I have given a short statement of our vision and purpose to assure you that this ECOSOCC Assembly would not be developed as a Trade Union that is out to service the interest of its elected Members. We came here to serve the continent and we shall do so honestly and diligently. Accordingly, I have been sincere and candid in my appraisal of tasks, challenges and even persons, activities and programs. In doing so, I have reflected the ethics of civil society where we say things as they are. This ECOSOCC Assembly would be an honest and sincere Assembly. Our promise to you is that we shall deliver on the promise of ECOSOCC in the time allocated for us to carry out our mandate. I and my colleagues ask for your sincere and collective support for this venture . I am certain that you will give us such support.

Long Live the African Union.

OPENING STATEMENT BY HE MR ERASTUS MWENCHA,
THE DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE AFRICAN UNION COMMSSION

ON THE OCCASION OF THE LAUNCH OF THE 2ND ECOSOCC GENERAL ASSEMBLY,
NAIROBI, KENYA, 22 DECEMBER 2014

 
OPENING STATEMENT BY HE MR ERASTUS MWENCHA, THE DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE AFRICAN UNION COMMISSION.

Excellency, Ms. Amina Abdallah, the Foreign Minister of the Republic of Kenya and Member of the Executive Council of the African Union.

The Presiding Officer of ECOSOCC,

Members of the Bureau of ECOSOCC

Members of the ECOSOCC General Assembly

Distinguished Representatives of African Civil Society,

Members of the Press Corps,

Participants,

Invited Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen

It gives me great pleasure to welcome you all to the inauguration of the Second Permanent General Assembly of ECOSOCC. This is a very important day for the African Union, the African civil society and our continent in general. It marks the transition of the ECOSOCC process as it grows and matures with age. About six years ago in 2008 in Dar Es’ Salaam, Tanzania, I represented the AU Commision at the official ceremony that marked the inauguration of the First ECOSOCC Assembly at an official ceremony in which President Kikwete, the President of Tanzania presided. I am now here for the inauguration of the Second Assembly that is taking place here in Kenya, my home state.

I am happy to have been present at the creation and to be also present at the development and it is my hope and aspiration to have ECOSOCC grow from strength to strength as it develops even further. I learnt that the elections that preceded this inauguration have been conducted in a free and fair atmosphere and with a spirit of collegiality. The result has been accepted by all in a wonderful atmosphere in which there are no winners and losers. The Second ECOSOCC General Assembly is therefore beginning on a strong foundation that gives us the utmost assurance that it would perform excellently and deliver on the promises that inspired the founders of the African Union to create this unique Organ as a bridge for effective partnership between governments and all segments of civil society in Africa.

Excellences,
The Presiding Officer,
Members of the Bureau,
Ladies and Gentlemen

It is important at this stage to retrace the road that led us here to this unique occasion. The tenure of the Second ECOSOCC Assembly expired in September 2012 and the Summit of the African Union that met in June/ July of that year directed the Commission to carry out the next elections on the due date of September 2016.

The Commission then established an Interdepartmental Committee made up of the various relevant departments to verify and appraise the eligibility of the candidates in accordance with the provisions of the ECOSOCC Statutes. The aim was to ensure that the consequent elections would be held in September 2012.

This proved difficult and impossible because though there were several applications for membership, the outcome of the verification exercise did not produce a sufficient pool of candidates required for the elections. Thus the Commision continued to extend the call for applications for elections into the Second ECOSOCC Permanent General Assembly until June/ July 2014 when it submitted a progress report on the exercise to the Executive Council of the African Union in Malabo and suggested a roadmap on the way forward.

Excellences,
The Presiding Officer,
Members of the ECOSOCC General Assembly,
Participants,
Ladies and Gentlemen

The progress report submitted by the Commision to the Malabo Summit in July 2014 proposed four options for the consideration of the Executive Council on the way forward. The first was to relax the requirements for eligibility for Membership as contained in the ECOSOCC Statutes with a particular focus on lowering the criteria that 50 per cent of the resources of an Organization must come from internal African sources.

The second was to carry out a three months sensitization program with a view to mobilizing a sufficient pool of candidates to carry out the elections for a Permanent General Assembly with four-year tenure. The third was to establish an interim ECOSOCC Assembly for two years with whatever number of candidates those are available. The fourth was to carry out the sensitization exercise and if the numbers were sufficient to establish a Permanent General Assembly for four years and if the numbers were still not sufficient to establish an Interim Assembly for two years.

The Executive Council of the African Union accepted the fourth option through its decision EX/CL 849 (XXV) of July 2014. Council was specific that it would not lower the eligibility criteria because it is the measure of authenticity of Africa civil society organizations. Council gave a strict three months deadline for the sensitization and motivation campaign and directed that an ECOSOCC Assembly whether interim or Permanent should be established before the end of 2014.

Excellences,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Commission approached this task with due diligence. It developed and approved a roadmap that complied with the strict deadline, defined targets and timelines imposed by Council. The ECOSOCC Sensitization and Motivation Campaign was carried out across the five regions of the continent in the period between August and early October 2014.it was a very successful campaign that has set the pace for AU image building and the mobilization of the African grassroots in support of the processes of integration and development of the continent. The positive effect of this campaign has been widely acknowledged and sets precedence for the wider AU family.

This was followed by close scrutiny, verification and appraisal of the eligibility of candidates according to the requirements stipulated in the ECOSOCC Statutes. Elections into the ECOSOCC General Assembly were then conducted in the immediate period preceding this inauguration from 18-22 December 2014. At the end of the exercise 64 candidates were elected into the ECOSOCC General Assembly, which together with the six nominated Members of the Commission amounts to about 70 foundation Members of the new ECOSOCC Assembly. Thus what we are establishing today would be a Second Permanent General Assembly of ECOSOCC.

It is also on record that the number of Members that would begin the work of the Second General Assembly is above those that began the work of the First ECOSOCC General Assembly. At her meetings with the former African Heads of States and a section of the Executive Council of the Union last weekend in South Africa, the Chairperson of the Commission, Her Excellency Dr. Nkozasana Dlamini Zuma had promised the Commission was faithfully implementing the task and would report on the establishment of a Permanent General ECOSOCC Assembly at the 2015 January Summit. Her Excellency and the Commision under her leadership are now delivering on that promise. What we said we shall do is what we have now done.
Excellences,
The Presiding Officer of ECOSOC,
Members of the Bureau and Assembly of ECOSOCC,
Participants,
Invited Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen

I cannot end our presentation without thanking the foot soldiers of the Commission of the African Union that were part and parcel of this effort under the guidance of the Chairperson and the Commision. I wish to acknowledge the work of the Interdepartmental Committee on the Verification and appraisal of the candidates for ECOSOCC elections that embraces various segments of the Commission, the Office of the Legal Counsel for its various contributions, and the various units and arms of the Commission that have worked together strenuously to implement the decision of the Summit. Above all, I must acknowledge the excellent work of the Secretariat in CIDO under the leadership of the Director that has shaped this enterprise.

Now that the Commission has set the foundation, the main challenge of the Second ECOSOCC Permanent Assembly that would be led by Mr. Joseph Chilengi and the ECOSOCC Bureau is to deliver on the promise of ECOSOCC. In doing this, they must learn from the challenges of the preceding ECOSOCC Assembly and the illustrious example of the Interim ECOSOCC. ECOSOCC needs to operationalize its cluster Committees and play its desired role in the policy making process.

It must be an agent of progressive change in the AU system as well as a practical tool for popularizing AU activities and program while harnessing the contributions of the Ordinary African citizens in the affairs of the AU. ECOSOCC must play a critical role in advancing Agenda 2063. It must also lead by example and not fall prey to those weaknesses that it criticizes our governments for.

The African Union Commission assures you of its support and cooperation in this enterprise.

I thank you all