Addis Ababa, 30 October 2017: The Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union, Moussa Faki Mahamat, starts an official visit to South Africa, today. During this visit, which will conclude on 31 October, the Chairperson will consult with President Jacob Zuma, the Minister for International Relations and Cooperation, Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, and other senior Government officials.

The visit will provide an opportunity to exchange views on a number of issues of mutual interest. Discussions will focus on efforts to address some of the conflict and crisis situations on the continent; as well as on economic integration and development and the related flagship projects of the First Ten Year Implementation Plan of Agenda 2063, including the Continental Free Trade Area, the establishment of the single air market in line with the Yamoussoukro Declaration and the operationalization of the Pan-African University Institute for Space Sciences.

Progress on the implementation of the African Union institutional reforms as agreed during the Addis Ababa Summit of January 2017 will also feature in the consultations with the South African authorities. 

The Chairperson of the Commission will use the opportunity of his visit to meet with the heads of some of the South Africa-based African Union institutions: the Pan-African Parliament, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Planning and Coordinating Agency, the African Peer Review Mechanism, the African Commission of Nuclear Energy, the Pan-African University Institute for Space Sciences, the African Risk Capacity, the African Union Foundation and the Pan-African Women’s Organizations.