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STATEMENT OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COMMISSION AT THE OPENING OF THE FIRST MEETING OF THE REGIONAL OVERSIGHT MECHANISM FOR THE PEACE, SECURITY AND COOPERATION FRAMEWORK FOR THE DRC AND THE REGION, ADDIS ABABA, 26 May 2013

Excellencies Heads of State and Government of the ICGLR and SADC,

Mr. Secretary General of the United Nations,

Invited Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am pleased to welcome you to the AU Commission on the occasion of the first meeting of the Regional Oversight Mechanism of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the Region that was signed in Addis Ababa on 24 February 2013.

Yesterday, we commemorated our fiftieth Anniversary. It was an important moment of reflection on our past and rededication to the future of Africa. Today is the first day of that future we have planned for Africa. Today we are making the first step towards Africa 2063.

Amongst our pledges for the future, we undertook not to bequeath wars to the next generation of Africans. The conflict in the Great Lakes, and finding lasting solutions, is therefore part of these first steps we must take into the future.

The signing of the Framework in February this year was an expression of our collective awareness, solidarity and a shared responsibility. It illustrated the commitment of all the countries of the region to make renewed efforts to peace and a better life for all the people of the region. It generated hope for a region that had more than its share of violence and conflict.

We therefore have to build on this in order to realize our shared goal of peace, security, stability and development in the Great Lakes Region. As we gather here today, I have no doubt that each of the leaders of the signatory countries would endeavor to fulfill the commitments made. In this respect, allow me to welcome the establishment, by the DRC authorities, of their National Oversight Mechanism.

On its part, the African Union will spare no efforts in supporting the regional efforts. The AU Peace and Security Council welcomed the signing of the Framework Agreement; and recently undertook a mission to the DRC, including the eastern part of the country, to assess the situation on the ground and determine support to the ongoing efforts in both the DRC and the region as a whole.

The African Union, notably through Special Representative for the Great Lakes Region, Ambassador Boubabacar Gaoussou Diarra, will continue to closely work with the International Conference of the Great Lakes Region and the Southern African Development Community, as well as with the United Nations and other international stakeholders in a spirit of true partnership.
I congratulate Mme Mary Robinson on her appointment as the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General. Her experience and commitment will undoubtedly contribute towards sustaining the momentum for peace and help mobilize international support.

Essentially, the objective of this meeting is to reach an understanding on a process for the development of benchmarks for the implementation of the Framework. It is also an opportunity for all signatory parties to update each other on the steps that have been taken since the signing of the Framework, in February 2013.

We are confident that we will emerge from this meeting with renewed determination and commitment to implement the Framework in letter and spirit.

In so doing, we must keep in mind the ultimate goal of all our interventions: to allow the people of the Great Lakes to live in harmony and peace, to use the proceeds from their natural resources to build infrastructure, social services and contribute towards a shared prosperity; to participate in development of their country. It is therefore critical that in all our endeavours, we involve women and youth, as drivers of peace, transformation and prosperity.

In conclusion, I would like to commend Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his continued commitment to this process.

I thank you.

Statement by H.E. Dr. Nkozasana Dlamini ZUMA, Chairperson of the African Union Commission
At the 29th NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee (HSGOC)

Addis Ababa, 25 May 2013
 

Excellency, Haile Mariam DESALEGN, Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and Chairperson of the African Union

Excellency, Macky SALL, President of the Republic of Senegal and Chairperson of the NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee

Excellencies, Members of the NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee

Chief Executive Officer of the NEPAD Agency

Distinguished Heads of Regional Economic Communities and International Organizations

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am honored to address this breakfast Session of the NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee.

I warmly welcome Your Excellencies to the headquarters of the African Union, including the newly-elected members of this high-level Committee.

This 29th NEPAD Meeting is being held as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the OAU and the African Union.

Your Excellencies will agree with me that the theme of our anniversary - Pan Africanism and African Renaissance - represents an expression of the shared vision and collective political will of African leaders to make transformation happen.

Your Excellencies will recall when the 2001 Lusaka Summit adopted NEPAD it recognized that “issues such as the escalating poverty levels, underdevelopment and the continued marginalization of Africa needed a new radical intervention, spearheaded by African leaders.” As we use this time of celebrations to reflect and plan, we must assess how far we are in implementing this radical intervention.

There is no question that Africa is forging ahead in a positive direction, if we look at such indicators as economic growth, foreign direct investment and public investments by our governments.

And yet, the continental infrastructure deficit remains huge. Africa’s total electricity generated equals that of Spain, even though we have twenty times the people.

Data from 2009 show that only 28% of Africa’s population has access to electricity, compared to 70% in other parts of the developing world; and less than 20% of our roads were tarred in the same year.

Our industrial capacity is still extremely limited. Growth of the last decade is still mainly driven by global demand for Africa’s minerals, oil and agricultural products; and the number of countries where manufacturing accounts for more than 15% of their GDP are still very few.

We therefore still need radical interventions, as Heads of State and Government pledged in Lusaka. As we develop our 50th Anniversary Declaration and our Agenda 2063, we must consider the interventions required to place Africa on a sustainable and rapid path to prosperity.

This must include much more ambitious plans to connect Africa with modern infrastructure, to connect all our capitals with rail and road; to address our energy, water and ICT needs and to develop our marine and agricultural sectors.

All these issues can only be done if we act together, with a Pan African vision of integrating our economies, promoting Africa-wide businesses and integrating our markets.

Most importantly, Africa cannot expect its development to be carried by others. Taking our destiny in our own hands means mobilizing Africa’s domestic resources to drive its development.

Einstein said that we cannot keep on doing the same things, and expect different results.

As we enter the next fifty years, let us be resolute in our sustained efforts to build an integrated, people-centered and prosperous Africa, at peace with itself.

I thank you

CLOSING REMARKS BY THE COMMISSSIONER OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY ON THE OCCASION OF THE PAN AFRICAN BUSINESS CONFERENCE IN ADDIS ABABA ON THE 24TH MAY 2013

My first task is to thank our Key note Speaker for this session, Dr. Donald Kaberuka. His vision for the continent and role of the Private Sector in Africa is inspirational, pragmatic and results-oriented in line with the African Development Bank’s private sector development strategy. The Commission under the visionary leadership of H.E. Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma has identified eight strategic priorities for the current term including the important task of leaving a legacy of a long term strategic framework for the continent. The AUC, UNECA and AfDB as Africa’s premier institutions, have committed to work closely in order to facilitate the development of “Agenda 2063: A shared Framework for Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Development”. It is precisely in this context that the Pan African Business Conference marks the beginning of stakeholder engagement that will take place during the coming months. The outcome of this meeting which has been shared with us by the Pan African Chamber of Commerce, through Mr. Kebour Ghenna, will be placed on record as one of the contributions to the thematic issues of trade and investment, jointly facilitated by the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department of Economic Affairs of the AUC. We will continue with thematic consultations after the Summit.
The dialogue which took place here today is also a pre-cursor of a platform that the Commission will be launching in the coming months called the African Business Council. When the Heads of State and Government adopted the Boosting Intra-African Trade and Continental Free Trade Area, they created some structures to support the realization of the continent’s goals and targets. In the medium term, the continent will double intra-African trade from 2012 until 2022 (from 10 – 12% to 20-25%). It will also establish the African Business Council which will comprise of continental and regional business organisations, civil society organisations representing inter alia women and youth. The ABC will play an advisory role to the African Union policy organs, namely the Conference Trade Ministers and the High Level African Trade Committee comprising of Heads of States from the countries that are chairing the Regional Economic Communities. They are the champions of Boosting Intra-African Trade and will work to resolve the political challenges that prevent fast progress towards the Continental Free Trade Area by 2017 and progress on intra-African trade. This model is already taking place in East Africa and COMESA where the Business Councils present their recommendations directly to the policy organs for consideration in decision making at the regional level.
The African Union Commission has adopted a number of continental frameworks in Agriculture (CAADP), Accelerated Industrial Development of Africa (AIDA), Infrastructure (PIDA), Intra-African Trade and CFTA (BIAT/CFTA) all recognize the important role of the private sector. The AUC and RECs are scaling up important initiatives such as the Investment Monitoring Platform in partnership with UNIDO. Based on deliberations here we believe that we should move beyond a partnership between Private Sector and Public Sector Actors only, we need to include the People in the equation.
My final duty is to thank all those who contributed in different ways to the successful outcome to this meeting. First and foremost I want to thank all the speakers and moderators for the quality of their presentations and discussions. Each session was organized by one of the co-organisers. The partnership between Pan African Chamber of Commerce and the African Union has been strengthened and we wish to thank them for the initiative and their organization to make the event a success. UNDP and UN Global Compact have been supportive and they have brought much value through their financial and non-financial support for this event. Also, I am informed that there are a number of sponsors that we need to recognize because their financial contributions made the event possible. I should not forget to thank my colleagues at the AUC who coordinated this event, the UNECA for the use of this facility and the host Government of Ethiopia for their support. It is only through partnerships that we can realize the full potential for Africa, and AUC is committed to transform from being a Union of member states to being a people-centred Union.
This is a new beginning, and we look forward to strengthened partnerships, greater coownership of continental frameworks and decisions, and more importantly, joint accountability for the success of our continent in the coming 50 years.
I thank you for your attention and hope you enjoy the 50th Anniversary Celebrations in Addis Ababa.