Dakar, Senegal, 8th November 2108 – The Department of Trade and Industry of the African Union Commission (AUC) is organizing the Second Working Group workshop on the African Union - African Minerals and Energy Resources Classification and Management System-Pan African Resource Code (AU-AMREC-PARC) in Dakar, Senegal.
The AU-AMREC-PARC which is based on the United Nations Framework Classification culminates from a consultative process that the AUC has been leading since August, 2016 when the United Nations Framework Classification (UNFC) was considered as a model for African minerals and energy resources management system. The first continental workshop on the development of this initiative was held in October, 2017 in Cairo where 33 member states were represented and were initial draft of the document was elaborated.
The second workshop results from ongoing, concerted efforts to finalize the drafting of the document and its objective is to continue with the elaboration of the document by the technical experts and create leadership taskforces that will contribute to the document based on previously defined leadership approaches. Additionally, the workshop aimed at establishing a roadmap for the finalization of AU-AMREC-PARC and its submission to the wider stakeholder meetings for validation and to AU Policy Organs for endorsement before implementation.
During his opening remarks, Mr. Frank Mugyenyi, Head of Mineral Resources Unit of the Department of Trade and Industry of the African Union Commission, emphasized that the AU-AMREC-PARC is an important Africa Mining Vision instrument that will be critical in fighting illicit financial Flows due to which the African continent currently loses an estimated $100 billion annually. He underscored that the AU-AMREC-PARC will also be a key instrument for resource based industrialization and together with other policies and tools being implemented by the AUC, will ultimately lead to the realization of the Agenda 2063 which is a “Global Strategy to optimize use of African Resources for the benefit of all Africans”. The AU-AMREC-PARC is expected to empower member states through implementing a continental-wide, standardized minerals resources management system that will greatly contribute to the creation of regional value chains and will subsequently create jobs and wealth for the growing youth population and in this regard it will contribute to the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). For this to happen policies, legal and regulations informed by well researched and home grown solutions together with innovation and financing must be working together with will need to be put in place. Africa must know precisely what its natural endowments constitutes and its economic or non-economic worthiness and viability.
According to the Technical Advisor to the technical working group, Mr. Harikrishnan Tulsidas, Economic Affairs Officer at United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, "the United Nations Framework Classification for Resources (UNFC) based AMREC will facilitate a new global model of transformative resource management which acknowledges the SDGs as its very core’’, he indicated. He also mentioned that the Framework is aligned to Agenda 2063 and the African Mining Vision and underscored that it is intended to realize the vision that natural resources should benefit the people of Africa. ‘’The system takes into account a holistic consideration for social, environmental and economic aspects and looks into value-addition, zero waste and interlinkages with other sectors of the economy to promote resilience and robustness in the activities’’, he concluded.
For further information, please contact
Mr. Frank Mugyenyi, Head of Mineral Resources Unit - Email: MugyenyiF@africa-union.org
Media contacts:
Patient Atcho - Department of Trade and Industry – Tel: + 251 912120442 - Email: AtchoP@africa-union.org
Esther Azaa Tankou, Head of Information Division, Directorate of Information and Communication, AUC Tel. +251 911361185, E-mail: yamboue@africa-union.org
For further information: Directorate of Information and Communication | African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@african-union.org I Web Site: www.au.int I Addis Ababa | Ethiopia
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