33rd AU Summit:  Member States ponder over first implementation report for Agenda 2063

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On the margins of the ongoing 33rd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, African Union Member States Thursday deliberated on the First Continental Report on the Implementation of Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want.

Agenda 2063 is Africa’s blueprint and master plan for sustainable development and economic growth. The continent began implementation of the 50-year framework by ensuring its domestication into national and regional development strategies, which went simultaneously with the Agenda’s implementation across AU Member States, achieving an aggregate score of 32% against the 2019 targets.

The meeting, themed: ‘Evidence-Based Reporting for Collective Reflection and Coordinated Action on Agenda 2063 Implementation,’ was moderated by H.E Kwesi Thomas Quartey, deputy chairperson of the African Union Commission. It featured wide-ranging reflections on lessons drawn from the implementation and reporting on the Agenda. “The vision of Agenda 2063 is espoused in [Africa’s] inclusive growth, led by its own people. It is a self-authored script. Its effective implementation therefore needs continuous reporting,”  H.E Quartey said.

Speaking on behalf of President Alassane Ouattara of Côte d’Ivoire, who is the champion of the Follow-Up of the Implementation of Agenda 2063, Ivorian Minister of Trade and Industry, H.E Souleymane Diarrassouba, said Agenda 2063 provides a unique opportunity for Africa’s sustainable development, fostering mutual accountability amongst African countries.

Also speaking at the event, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, South Africa’s Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs cum immediate past chairperson of the AU Commission, said Africa’s yearning for an integrated and peaceful continent requires conscious planning as espoused by Agenda 2063.  “Agenda 2063 is espoused in ‘The Africa We Want,’ as envisioned by our forebears. Our yearning for a united, integrated and peaceful Africa requires the conscious act of planning, as provided by this Agenda,” said Dr Dlamini-Zuma.

In his response, Dr Ibrahim Mayaki, CEO of the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD (AUDA-NEPAD), who keynoted the meeting, described Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma – during whose tenure the Agenda was adopted –  as the ‘Mother of Agenda 2063’ and applauded her passion, zeal and unwavering commitment to the implementation of the Agenda. “During your term at the African Union Commission, you emphasized the need to always consult the people of Africa, to get their consent and ownership of any policies, plans and programmes that impact on their lives,” Dr Mayaki, told her.

The First Continental Report on the Implementation of Agenda 2063 is a consolidated and evidence-based assessment of country and regional-level progress reports on Agenda 2063, complemented with interventions and results achieved at the regional and continental level. The meeting saw the launching of the Agenda 2063 implementation performance dashboard1; it showcases quantitative data on the progress made by AU Member States in the implementation of both Agenda 2063 and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).