Ethiopia hosted the third summit of African Heads of State and Government from 6^th to 8^th July, which ended with the passing of 18 decisions and 2 declarations. The Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC) of the African Union made recommendations to the Executive Council on various issues, such as the status of the implementation of the Maputo declaration on HIV/AIDS, the budget of the Commission and the AU Vision, Mission and Strategic framework. The Summit accepted in principle this new framework, and recommended it for implementation at a later date. In a move towards the fair distribution of the institutional organs of the AU, it was decided that the Central Bank should be situated in Western Africa, the Investment Bank in Northern Africa, the African Court in Eastern Africa and that the Pan-African Parliament be located in South Africa. Tanzania - which alongside Angola, Lesotho and Malawi signed up to the African Peer Review Mechanism - was also elected as the representative state for Africa on the United Nations Security Council.

A 300 strong armed peace-keeping force is to be dispatched to Darfur to protect the AU observers that are to be deployed, while the Union has appealed to its international partners, in particular the G8, the European Union and the UN to support the establishment of the African Standby Force. The Summit members agreed to accelerate the implementation of gender specific economic, social and legal measures aimed at challenging gender inequalities and at combating the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The Summit rejected Libya's request to move the Commission of the African Union from Addis Ababa and decided that the 4^th AU Summit should be held in the Sudan on a date to be established in due course.

Among the meetings and deliberations that took place, the Executive Council put forward a strategic plan endorsed by African Foreign Ministers and adopted during the Summit which defines 23 priority programmes to be carried out between 2004 and 2007, as part of a major effort to realise the “long-cherished dream of African Renaissance”. The plan identifies the need to foster political will for African integration as a top priority and points out potential economic, social and political obstacles.

Speaking at the opening of the session of the African Union on 6^th July, Chairperson of the Commission Alpha Omar Konare said that Africans could, by resolutely implementing all their new programmes and changing strategies, come out of the difficulties and tragic situations prevalent on their continent. “We have to change our strategies and changing them means drawing inspiration from the brilliant victories of the last century against colonisation and apartheid,” he said.

Addressing the gathering, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, said that the great strides that have been made in the past few months by the Union are giving hopes that the continent is moving in the right direction, but Africa needs to prioritize addressing the root causes of poor governance to solve the insecurity and underdevelopment problem it has been facing. Newly elected Chairperson of the AU, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo said he would work with “renewed determination with all member states, the Commission and with all stakeholders to accelerate the socio-economic development of Africa with focus on crucial areas deserving priority consideration.”

An International conference, organised by Ethiopia in collaboration with the Millennium Project Task Force on Hunger, to discuss ways of enhancing the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) was also held on the 6^th July. The “Innovative Approaches to Meeting the Hunger MDG in Africa” seminar was designed to focus on specific and concrete examples of successful technical and institutional approaches to tackling the challenges of hunger and food security. Kofi Annan also spoke at the seminar of his fear that the Millennium Development Goal of halving hunger by 2015 seemed to be more a far-off fantasy than an achievable target. Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, presenting Ethiopia’s Action Plan to the seminar, said that hunger in Africa could be defeated. “The fact that the UK will be at the helm of both the G8 and the EU in 2005 would provide an opportunity for creating the impetus for galvanizing global solidarity. Developed countries have shown their willingness to help African countries, including Ethiopia, meet the MDGs and effectively end hunger.” He also said that Ethiopia is on course to achieve food security within five years. “So long as we all do our share, I am confident that implementation will be as good as the strategy we have articulated and that, therefore, we will attain our objective.” 

Alpha Omar Konare said there is an urgent need to support the food security coalition efforts of Ethiopia, “...which proved exemplary to the whole of Africa.” 

The 2^nd Conference of the Organisation of African First Ladies Against HIV/AIDS also took place, led by the spouse of PM Meles, Azeb Mesfin, during which the organisation’s structure, strategic plan and finances were discussed, and elections held for a new chairperson and steering committee.

ENDS