PRESS RELEASE N.02/ 16th AU SUMMIT
NEPAD Steering Committee to be briefed on progress…
Top priority actions for 2011will be on the agenda
20 January 2011, Midrand – The forthcoming 41st edition the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Steering Committee, which is set for 22-23 January 2011 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on the margins of the 16th African Union Summit, will examine the progress made in the past year with regard to the implementation of the NEPAD programme.
The NEPAD Steering Committee (SC) is composed of Personal Representatives of African Leaders who form the NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee (HSGOC). The SC members are responsible for overseeing the work and programmatic activities of the NEPAD Agency and they report to the NEPAD HSGOC.
Dr. Ibrahim Assane Mayaki, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency (NEPAD Agency), will brief the members of the SC on the new NEPAD programmatic approach and the progress being made in the continued roll-out of continental projects and programmes in key areas such as infrastructure and agriculture.
Heads of key development agencies and leading experts that have jointly worked with the NEPAD Agency over the past year in the implementation of the NEPAD programme will also be on hand to elaborate on the outcomes of their work. These will include United Nations (UN) Under Secretary -General and Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), Mr. Abdoulie Janneh and Prof. David Abdulai, Executive Director of the Graduate School of Business Leadership at UNISA.
Prof. Paul Collier of the Centre for the Study of African Economies, Oxford University Economic Department will also deliver a key-note address.
This edition of the SC comes a year after the landmark 14th AU Summit decision on the integration of NEPAD into the AU and the establishment of the NEPAD Agency. It is in this regard that Dr. Mayaki will inform the SC members that the NEPAD Agency has completed the adoption of the AU administrative rules, regulations and practices. The SC members will also be briefed on the top priority actions for 2011.
The 41st NEPAD Steering Committee will be held at the United Nations Conference Centre at the UN-Economic Commission for Africa Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
All journalists are invited to attend the opening.
Date: 22-23 January 2011 Time: (Opening Session) 10:00am-11:30am Venue: UNCC, UNECA Headquarters, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

For more information and to arrange for interviews, please contact:
NEPAD Agency: Andrew Kanyegirire, Tel.: +27-83-704-4506, Email: andrewk@nepad.org
Directorate of Communication and Information, AUC. Tel.: +251 911 3611 85, Email: yamboue@africa-union.org
About the NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency: The NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency (NEPAD Agency) as the technical body of the African Union www.africa-union.org, works closely with the African Union Commission (AUC), regional economic communities, national governments, civil society and the private sector to push for programmes and projects that focus on improving the lives of the African people. The NEPAD Agency is the leading African development expert, able to mobilise the private sector, heads of state and African people as a force for positive change, building continental prosperity and regional integration. For more information, go to: www.nepad.org