Eleventh Session of« Fridays of the Commission »
Conference/Debate

The First Session of “Fridays of the Commission” for 2012will be held on June 1st,2012from 2:30pm to 6:00pm.
At the Headquarters of the Commission of the African Union

“THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY AND WORLD GOVERNANCE”

The interest of the theme lies in the responses to be proposed to the many questions it raises, chief among which are the questions listed hereunder, which the average African citizen probably asks himself or herself every day.

The international community: What is it? What is it made up of? What is its content? Why has it now become powerless in the face of the modern-day crises? Can the peoples in search of freedom and democracy count on the international community? Are the prevarications of the United Nations and the G8 in the face of the current crises not signs of the urgent need to reform the global governance system? Does Africa have a voice in the international community? What should the Continent do in order to make itself heard? Is Africa a member? Is its voice audible? Can the peoples of the developing world who express a need or a request for democracy benefit from its protection?

The answers to all this questioning will further enlighten Africans on the recent actions of the international community in their continent, and help them to better understand the role and position of the AU in the said community.

In order to obtain the rudiments of a response, the “Fridays of the Commission” Team called upon African experts, whose knowledge in the area to be addressed no longer needs to be proven, namely:

i. Professor Adams Oloo, Dean of the Department of Political Science and Public Administration, University of Nairobi, Kenya; - “Africa’s place in the International Community: Prospects and Obstacles”; and
ii. Professor Severine M. Rugumamu, Dean of the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania; - “The International Community and Global Governance: “Myths and Realities”.
iii. Professor François Ndengwe , "Chairman, African Advisory Board", Cameroon :- “The Four Proposals to Lift Africa’s position in Global Economic Governance”.
iv.
Officials of the AU Commission, African and non-African diplomats in Addis Ababa, researchers, academics in Addis Ababa, students of Ethiopian universities and institutions of higher learning.

You are all invited to participate in this key Conference/Debate in order to obtain information, share your viewpoints and further enrich your knowledge on the challenges of integration in Africa.

To attend the lecture, you can come to the AU Commission on the date it is holding, and register directly at the entrance.(Please bring your ID cards)!

Department of Economic Affairs
In cooperation with
Department of Information and Communication
Contact person: Ms Fetun Getahun
E-mail: fetunG@africa-union.org; Tel.: (251 11) 5 51 92 87, Fax: (251 11) 5 51 02 49