Maravi

Africa's affairs in safe hands - Ping

Africa's affairs in safe hands - Ping
By Mwala Kalaluka
Wed 17 Oct. 2012, 12:50 CAT

OUTGOING African Union Commission chairperson Dr Jean Ping says he is giving way to a great lady in South Africa's Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma.

And Dr Dlamini Zuma says she will seek to define and build a trajectory that extracts the continent from poverty to development.From front page Dr Ping, a former foreign affairs minister for Gabon, said this during the inauguration of Dr Dlamini Zuma, who was South Africa's interior minister and President Jacob Zuma's ex-wife, as the new AU Commission chairperson at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa on Monday.

"I am giving way to a great lady... I am confident the affairs of the continent are in safe hands," said Dr Ping as he handed over the symbols of the African Union to Dr Dlamini Zuma at a ceremony attended by AU chairperson Dr Boni Yayi, President of the Republic of Benin.

Others that attended the installation ceremony were the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Hailemariam Desalegn and the AU Commission's deputy chairperson Erastus Mwencha, among others.

And Dr Dlamini Zuma, who becomes the first woman to head the AU Commission, said that the Commission would take proactive steps to support member states and regional bodies in their efforts to promote, consolidate and expand citizen-centred, developmental and democratic governance.

"This is in line with the African Union's vision of achieving a prosperous, peaceful and integrated continent. In pursuing this African agenda, the Commission will take into account, the shared values of consistent political and democratic freedom, and the development and modernisation of African productive forces," Dr Dlamini Zuma said.

Dr Dlamini Zuma said her priority areas would be peace, security and stability, food security, exploitation of natural resources, health and education, gender equality, youth development, development of infrastructure, promotion of intra-African trade, building the African Union's capacity to deliver efficiently and effectively and consolidating relationships with key partners.

She said that Africa had witnessed phenomenal progress over the past 20 years in socio-political and economic terms, but that the long walk to achieving the AU vision had not ended and there were still many hills to climb.

"Peace, security and stability are a prerequisite for development and good governance. Resolving conflicts such as those in Mali and the Sahel region, the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Great Lakes region, and in Guinea Bissau will be a priority for the Commission," Dr Dlamini Zuma said. "The Commission will also continue to provide the necessary support to Sudan and South Sudan in finalising all the outstanding issues between them."

On food security and mineral resources, Dr Dlamini Zuma noted that Africa had one quarter of the world's arable land which was a source of livelihood for 70 per cent of the population.

"Yet the continent generates only 10 per cent of global agricultural output. The African Union will therefore put maximum effort to implement the provisions of the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP), so that Africa can feed itself and have more for export," Dr Dlamini Zuma emphasised. "In terms of mineral resources, the Commission will push for exploitation of these resources so that they benefit the African people."

She further noted that maternal and infant mortality remain unacceptably high in Africa and pledged that the Commission would endeavour to reduce, if not eliminate maternal mortality, so that children have a fighting chance to reach their full potential and also that mothers get the chance to contribute fully to their families, societies, nations and continent.

"The Commission will accelerate implementation of programmes related to the African Women's Decade to realise gender equality and to ensure that women, who constitute slightly more than 50 per cent of the African population, are brought into the mainstream of decision-making processes and structures at all levels of society," Dr Dlamini Zuma said.

"The Commission views young people as an invaluable asset. In this regard, it will seek to harness the energy, resourcefulness and enthusiasm of young people so that they contribute positively to their societies, nations and the continent."

Dr Dlamini Zuma said the development of infrastructure and connectivity between the different African member states was key to Africa's integration efforts.

"The Commission will pursue the goal of unity for all Africans in the realisation that, working as one, the continent's total population of 1 billion people holds greater weight globally and can achieve much more than individual African states," said Dr Dlamini Zuma who beat Dr Ping in a tightly-contested election during the AU Summit held in Ethiopia in July this year.

Labels: AU, JEAN PING

posted by MrK @ 6:02 PM