The 36th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU) kicked off on Saturday in Addis Ababa with the participation of Prime Minister Aïmene Benabderrahmane, representing the President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune.
Chairing the opening of the summit, which was held under the theme “Accelerating the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)”, AU Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat said the session was taking place in an international context marked by instability fuelled by geopolitical conflicts, which inevitably had an impact on the African continent.
In addition to this, he said, there has been a decline in global economic growth over the past three years, hence the need for AU countries to “boost new mechanisms to ensure solutions to this situation”, while “working to support solidarity among states”.
“A situation that is getting more and more serious, especially as some African countries are facing the threat of terrorism alone, which raises more questions about the existence of African solidarity,” he continued.
Accelerating the implementation of the AfCFTA is one of the practical solutions to protect the African continent from these international economic crises, he said, adding that African leaders must accelerate the achievement of this goal, at least with regard to the free movement of people and goods.
In this context, African leaders are called upon to “intensify efforts to be positioned on the international scene”, Mr Faki stressed, noting “with satisfaction” the progress made in the AU’s request for admission to the G20, so as to “enable the AU to contribute to the proposal of solutions to international conflicts” and to underline the imperative of allowing Africa to become a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council.
Mr Faki also raised the issue of unconstitutional changes in some African countries, saying that it was important to review the penal system adopted by the AU to deal with such changes and make them more “effective”.
The AU SG also welcomed the progress made in the implementation of the roadmap for the “Silencing the Arms” project by 2030, which will go a long way in reducing the crises in some African countries.
The rotating chairmanship of the AU has been entrusted to the President of the Republic of Comoros, Azali Assoumani, by his Senegalese counterpart, Macky Sall.
