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      1. Home

      Sixteenth (16th) Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the Union

      Event
      Sixteenth (16th) Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the Union
      Jan 30, 2011 - 11:00 - Jan 31, 2011 - 11:00




      SIXTEENTH (16th) ORDINARY SESSION OF THE ASSEMBLY OF THE UNION

      30 - 31 January 2011

      Venue : UNCC-ECA




      DAY ONE: Sunday 30 January 2011

      09.30 – 10.00 hrs I. CLOSED SESSION for Heads of State and Government and Heads of Delegations plus one (1) member of their respective delegations proceed to Committee Room 1 at UNECA for consultations on the composition of the Bureau and Drafting Committee

      10.00 - 11.30 hrs

      II. OPENING CEREMONY

      • H.E. Prof. Bingu Wa Mutharika requests the Assembly to stand for the AU Anthem

      • AU Anthem

      • Welcome remark by the Chairperson of the Union

      • Statement by H.E. Mr. Jean Ping, Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union

      • Statement by H.E. Mr. Ban Ki-Moon, Secretary General of the United Nations

      • Statement by H.E. Mr. Amr Moussa, Secretary General of the League of Arab States;

      • Statement by the H.E. Mr. Mohamud Abbas, President of Palestine National Authority (PNA) and Chairman of Palestine Liberation Organisation Executive Committee (PLO)

      • Statement by H.E. Mr. Joseph Deiss, President of the United Nations General Assembly

      • Statement by the Guest of Honour, H.E. Mr. Nicolas Sarkozy, President of the Republic of France

      • Opening Statement by H.E. Prof. Bingu Wa Mutharika, President of the Republic of Malawi and Chairman of the African Union

      • Election of the members of the Bureau and the Drafting Committee

      • Acceptance Statement by the Incoming Chairperson of the Union

      • Continental Scientific Award Ceremony for two (2) successful African Scientists

      • End of the official Opening Ceremony

      12:00-12:30 hrs

      11.30 – 11.45 hrs • H.E. the incoming Chairperson of the Union requests the Heads of State and Government to proceed to the Lobby for a Group Photo

      11.45-12.15 hrs • Adoption of the Agenda and the work-programme (CLOSED SESSION)

      12.15-15.00 hrs LUNCH BREAK

      15.00-15.10 hrs III. THEME OF THE SUMMIT: “Towards Greater Unity and Integration through Shared Values” (PUBLIC SESSION)

      a) The Incoming Chairperson of the African Union declares the Debate on the theme open

      15.10 – 16.30 hrs b) Presentation and Discussion of the Theme of the Summit

       Introduction of the Overall Thrust by Mrs. Julia Dolly Joiner, Commissioner for Political Affairs (15 min)

       Presentation of the Theme by H.E. Mr. John Atta-Mills, President of the Republic of Ghana (15 min)

       Respondents:

      • H.E. Mr. Denis Sassou Nguesso, President of the Republic of Congo (10 min)

      • H.E. Mr. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, President of the United Republic of Tanzania (10 min)

      • H.E. Mr. Mohamed Ould Abdelazez, President of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania (10 min)

      • H.E. Mr. Hifikepunye Pohamba, President of the Republic of Namibia (10 min)

      • H.E. Mrs. Ellen Sirleaf Johnson, President of the Republic of Liberia (10 min)

      16.30 – 18.30 hrs c) Debate on the Theme (1 hr and 30 min)

      d) Adoption of the Declaration of the Assembly on the theme of the Summit (30 min)

      END OF THE DEBATE ON THE THEME

      20.00 hrs BANQUET OFFERED BY H.E. ATO MELES ZENAWI, PRIME MINISTER OF THE FEDERAL DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF ETHIOPIA

      DAY TWO: Monday 31 January 2011 (CLOSED SESSION)

      09.00 – 09.30 hrs Consideration of the Report of the Commission on the Year of Peace and Security in Africa (presented in a Public Session in the presence of the Press) (Item VII. 3 on the agenda) (30 minutes)

      09.30 – 13.00 hrs IV. ADOPTION OF THE BUDGET FOR 2011 FINANCIAL YEAR

      V. APPOINTMENT OF THE MEMBERS OF THE ADVISORY BOARD ON CORRUPTION

      VI. APPOINTMENT OF THE MEMBERS OF THE AFRICAN COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS AND WELFARE OF THE CHILD (ACERWC)

      VII. REPORTS

      1. Consideration of the Recommendations of the Executive Council on the Report of the Commission on the Implementation of Previous Decisions of the Executive Council and the Assembly

      2. Consideration of the Report of the Peace and Security Council on its activities and the State of Peace and Security in Africa

      3. Consideration of the Report of the Chairperson of NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee (HSGOC)

      4. Consideration of the Report of the Chairperson of the Committee of Ten on the UN Reforms

      5. Consideration of the Progress Report of the Commission on the Hissene Habre Case (in implementation of Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.272 (XIV))

      13.00 - 15.00 hrs LUNCH BREAK

      15.00 – 16.30 hrs 6. Consideration of the Progress Report of the Commission on the Implementation of Assembly Decision on the Transformation of the African Union Commission into the African Union Authority

      7. Consideration of the Report of the Committee of Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC)

      8. Consideration of the Report of the Commission on the 2nd Africa-Arab Summit, Sirte, Libya, 6-10 October 2010

      9. Consideration of the Report of the Commission on the 3rdAfrica-EU Summit, Tripoli, Libya, 29-30 November 2010

      10. Consideration of the Report of the Outgoing Chairperson of the Union on the Outcome of the G20 Summit held in Seoul, Korea, 11-12 November 2010

      15.00 – 16.30 hrs VIII. ITEMS PROPOSED BY MEMBER STATES

      1. Reconsideration of Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.263(XIII) on the Transformation of the African Union Commission into the African Union Authority (Item proposed by the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya)

      2. Convening of mid-year sessions of the ASSEMBLY OF THE UNION (July Sessions) (Item proposed by the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya) *

      3. Offer of the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya to host the 21st Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the Union in June/July 2013 (Item proposed by the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya)

      4. Establishment of an African Union Center for Post Conflict Reconstruction and Development (AUCPCRD) (Item proposed by the Arab Republic of Egypt)

      5. Briefing on African participation in the International Conference on Biodiversity, October 2011 in Nagoya (Japan) (Item proposed by the Gabonese Republic)

      6. The African National Congress (ANC) Centenary Celebrations (Item proposed by the Republic of South Africa)

      7. The African Diaspora Consultative Process (Item proposed by the Republic of South Africa)

      8. Women as a Resource in Sustainable Development and Economic Growth in Africa (Item proposed by the Republic of South Africa)

      9. The mandatory application of the principle of geographical representation in all African Union organs which have elected members. (Item proposed by the Republic of Chad)

      10. The Establishment of Regional Programmes to valorize African Liberation heritage (Item proposed by the United Republic of Tanzania)

      11. Decision on AU “decision-making process, lack of implementation of decisions, and the need to uphold and respect the integrity of Summit decisions by all Member States of the Union (Item proposed by the Republic of Namibia and co-sponsored by the Republic of Angola, Republic of Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Kingdom of Lesotho, the Republic of Malawi, the Republic of Mauritius, the Republic of Mozambique, the Republic of South Africa, the Kingdom of Swaziland, the United Republic of Tanzania, the Republic of Zambia and the Republic of Zimbabwe)

      12. Proposed Holding of African Union Summits on Integration (Item proposed by the Republic of Malawi)

      13. The Yaounde International Conference « Africa 21 » : Global Partnership for the Development of Africa (Item proposed by the Republic of Cameroon)

      16.30 - 20.00 hrs IX. ADOPTION OF DECISIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 18TH ORDINARY SESSION OF THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL

      X. ADOPTION OF DECISIONS AND DECLARATIONS OF THE 16TH ORDINARY SESSION OF THE ASSEMBLY OF THE UNION

      XI. ANY OTHER BUSINESS

      XII. DATE AND VENUE OF THE 17TH ORDINARY SESSION OF THE ASSEMBLY OF THE UNION

      (OPEN SESSION)

      XIII. CLOSING CEREMONY

      XIV. PRESS CONFERENCE BY THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE UNION AND THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COMMISSION

      Event Programme
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        AU

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        • Political Affairs, Peace and Security (PAPS)
        • Health, Humanitarian Affairs & Social Development (HHS)
        • Women, Gender and Youth
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        Agenda 2063

        Flagship Projects
        Integrated High Speed Train Network

        Connecting African capitals and commercial centers through a High-Speed Train Network; facilitating the movement of goods, factor services and people as well as reducing transport costs and relieving congestion of current and future systems through increased rail connectivity.

        More

        African Commodities Strategy

        Transforming Africa from a raw materials supplier by enabling countries to add value, extract higher rents from commodities, integrate into global value chains promote diversification anchored in value addition and local content development.

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        African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)

        Accelerating intra-African trade and boosting Africa’s trading position in the global market by strengthening Africa’s common voice and policy space in global trade negotiations.

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        The African Passport & Free Movement of People

        Removing restrictions on Africans’ ability to travel, work and live within their own continent by transforming restrictive laws and promoting visa free travel to enhance movement of all African citizens in all African countries.

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        Silencing the Guns by 2020

        Ending all wars, civil conflicts, gender-based violence, violent conflicts and preventing genocide in the continent by 2020.

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        The Grand Inga Dam Project

        Generating an estimated 43,200MW of power to support current regional power pools and their combined service to transform Africa from traditional to modern sources of energy and ensure access to clean and affordable electricity.

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        Single African Air-Transport Market

        Promoting intra-regional connectivity between the capital cities of Africa by creating a single unified air transport market in Africa, as an impetus to the continent’s economic integration and growth agenda.

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        African Economic Forum

        Multi-stakeholder meeting bringing together the Africa’s policy makers, private sector, academia and civil society to reflect on accelerating Africa’s socio- economic development and transformation by harnessing its vast resources.

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        African Financial Institutions

        Accelerating integration and economic development through the establishment of organisations which will play a pivotal role in the mobilization of resources and management of the African financial sector.

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        The Pan African e-Network

        Transforming Africa into an e-Society by implementing policies and strategies that lead to transformative e-applications and services in Africa such as broad band terrestrial infrastructure, cyber security and revolutionary bio and nanotechnology industries.

        More

        Africa Outer Space Strategy

        Strengthening Africa’s use of outer space to bolster development in critical sectors such as agriculture, disaster management, remote sensing, climate forecast, banking and finance, defense and security.

        More

        African Virtual & e-University

        Using ICT based programmes to increase access to tertiary and continuing education in Africa by reaching large numbers of students and professionals in multiple sites simultaneously.

        More

        Cyber Security

        Incorporating emerging technologies in Africa’s development plans and ensuring these technologies are used for the benefit of African individuals, institutions and nation states by ensuring data protection and safety online.

        More

        Great African Museum

        Preserving and promoting African cultural heritage by creating awareness of Africa’s vast, dynamic and diverse cultural artefacts and Africa’s continuing influence on world cultures in art, music, language, science, and so on.

        More

        Encyclopaedia Africana

        Provide an authoritative resource on the authentic history of Africa and African life.

        More

        • Theme of the Year 2026

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          AU Echo Magazine
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          2026-02-12

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          Forty-Eighth Ordinary Session
          11-12 February 2026
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          Theme of the Year 2026 Concept Note
          2025-07-11

          “Assuring Sustainable Water Availability and Safe Sanitation Systems to Achieve the Goals of Agenda 2063”

          More
          Speech
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          Allocution de Amb. Willy Nyamitwe, Président du Comité des Représentants Permanents (COREP) à la Cérémonie d’ouverture de la 3ᵉ Cohorte de la Bourse des Médias de L’union Africaine
          2026-03-11
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          2026-03-11
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          Statement by H.E. João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, President of the Republic of Angola and Chairperson of the AU, at the Opening Ceremony of the 39th Ordinary Session of The Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union
          2026-02-14
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          Statement by H.E. João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, President of the Republic of Angola and Outgoing Chairperson of the AU, at the Handover Ceremony to the New Chairperson of the AU
          2026-02-14
          AU Echo Magazine
          AU Echo 2025
          2026-02-20
          Documents
          Schedule of Statutory Meetings and Side Events of the 39th AU Summit
          2026-02-07
          Documents
          39th AU Summit Accreditation Documents
          2025-12-24

          39th AU summit Media Accreditation Platform

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          ECOSOCC State of Citizens’ Engagement Report
          2025-08-04
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