11-12 June 2019 – Lusaka, Zambia – The African Union – Economic Social and Cultural Council elected 10 cluster chairs to head the organ’s corresponding clusters which mirror the structure of the African union Commission. The election took place on Wednesdays 11 December 2018, during the 2nd Ordinary Session of the 3rd Permanent General Assembly of ECOSOCC held in Lusaka, Zambia

The newly-elected Sectoral Cluster Committee chairs are as follows:

• Mr. Roll Stephane NGOMAT (Peace and Security), Gabon
• Mr. Emmanuel Saffa ABDULAI (Political Affairs), Sierra Leone
• Mr. Henry ORIOKOT (Infrastructure, Energy and Tourism), Uganda
• Dr El Hacene A. MBARECK (Social Affairs), Mauritania
• Mr. Abdurrahman MOKHTAR (Trade and Industry), Libya
• Ms. LUYEYE K. HADDOU (Rural Economy and Agriculture), DRC
• Mr Botho SEBOKO (Human Resources, Science & Technology), Botswana
• Mme KONE Epse KONE Miyaihi Julie (Women, Gender and Development), Cote D’Ivoire
• Ms. Monde Reberiah KABANDULA (Economic Affairs), Zambia
• Mr. Abdourhman Hassan SAID (Cross-cutting), Djibouti

The newly elected members of the ECOSOCC took oath of office in the presence of the Director of CIDO, Mr. Ahmed El-Basheer El-Madani, the African Union Commission’s Legal Counsel and the outgoing Standing Committee members. It is important to note that’s the elections took into account, regional representation, technical competencies and majority votes from the General Assembly seated during elections.

The AU-ECCOSOC Presiding Officer Mr. Abozer Elmana Elligai in his opening remarks called on the newly-elected members of the General assembly to stand up and be counted in raising their voices in championing development across Africa.
“I urge all members of this 3rd General Assembly of AU-ECOSOCC to work hand in hand with their respective governments. The narrative that the civil society works in opposition with the government of the day needs to be changed. As a voice of the people, the civil society is an arm of development, meant to work hand in hand with government”, Elligai said.

Speaking on behalf of the African Union Chairperson HE Moussa Faki Mahamat, Mr. Ahmed El-Basheer, director of The Citizens and Diaspora organization Directorate (CIDO) impressed upon everyone present during the meeting, the importance of the General Assembly. “This meeting is a very important step in making sure that membership of the ECOSOCC’s 3rd General Assembly is finalized. This meeting also gives all of us gathered here an opportunity to share best practices in the setting up of ECOSOCC National Chapters across the African Union’s Member States”. Mr El-Basheer also extended his gratitude to the government of Zambia for accepting to host this Session of the 3rd General Assembly in Lusaka and in particular for all the work that the government of Zambia has been doing towards facilitating relocation of the ECOSOCC Secretariat to Lusaka, Zambia.
In her keynote address, the Vice President of the Republic of Zambia, Her Excellency Inongi Mutukwa Wina, MP, reiterated her government’s commitment to continue providing an enabling environment conducive for the smooth functioning of ECOSOCC, recognizing it as a critical institution of the African Union Commission. “The Zambian government remains committed to have close engagement with ECOSOCC and its associated civil society organizations. It is our government’s hope that this engagement will translate to more coordinated consultations on programmes related to the attainment of continental aspirations laid out in Agenda 2063 for peace and sustainable development for Africa”, Her Excellency Inongi Mutukwa Wina, said.

H.E Vice President was accompanied by the Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, HON Mr. Joseph Malanji, who led representatives of the ECOSOCC to a ground-breaking ceremony earmarking the start of the construction of the organ’s Secretariat. In his words, Malanji reaffirmed the Zambian government’s continued commitment to support the AU Commission during the relocation process of the ECOSOCC Secretariat and throughout the operations of the Secretariat soon as the relocation is completed.

AU Member states, European Union, Regional Economic Communities (RECs); and African diaspora organizations were in attendance.

Note to Editors.
The African Union – Economic Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC) is an advisory body of the AU whose purpose as an organ is to give civil society organizations a platform to contribute their input in the AU institutions and decision-making processes, in various projects and programmes. ECOSOCC is made up of CSOs from a wide range of sectors including labour, business and professional groups, service providers and policy think tanks, both from within Africa and the African diaspora.

For more information contact:
Mr. William Carew
Regional Policy Officer
CarewW@africa-union.org

Ernest Kaliza
Communication Consultant
EKaliza@africa-union.org

Directorate of Information and Communication | African Union Commission
E-mail: DIC@africa-union.org | Web Site: www.au.int | Addis Ababa | Ethiopia