DECISION ON THE NEW PARTNERSHIP FOR
AFRICA’S DEVELOPMENT (NEPAD)
Doc. Assembly/AU/7(XXVII)
NOTES WITH APPRECIATION the Report by the Chairperson of the NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee (HSGOC), H.E. Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal;
ENDORSES the conclusions of the Thirty Fourth and Thirty Fifth Sessions of the NEPAD HSGOC Meeting;
REAFFIRMS the continued relevance and uniqueness of the vision, sector priorities and core values enshrined in NEPAD as the flagship programme of the African Union (AU) and as a shared vision to advance regional, political and economic integration for the economic emancipation of African people;
RECALLS Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.283 (VIV) on the need for the NEPAD Agency as the technical body of the African Union to have the required flexibility to carry out its mandate and THEREFORE CALLS on the African Union Commission to facilitate the implementation of that decision in line with the aspirations of NEPAD and its initiators;
ENDORSES the implementation of key regional and continental programmes and projects as reflected in the NEPAD Agency Results-based Performance Report for January-December 2015 SPECIFICALLY NOTING the progress on African Science Technology and Innovation Indicators (ASTII); African Medicines Regulatory Harmonization Programme (AMRH); the NEPAD Agency’s contribution to the fight against Ebola Virus Disease; Strategic engagements on natural resources governance; technical support to Africa’s participation in the global climate change negotiations; technical support to Regional Economic Communities (RECs) under the Partnership for African Fisheries (PAF); National Agriculture and Food Security Investment Plans (NAFSIPs); National Gender Climate Change Agriculture programmes and Capacity Development for Women in Agribusiness under CAADP; institutional development support to member states and RECs under the Capacity Development Strategic Framework (CDSF) and the design of the Youth and Skills Project under the Rural Futures Programme;
APPRECIATES the progress recorded to date relating to the implementation of the Rural Futures Program which is promoting multi-sectorial approach for rural transformation by creating an enabling environment through a people-centred development based on equity and inclusiveness; FURTHER COMMENDS the NEPAD Agency for the commencement of the Decent Job for Rural Areas Project in four (4) AU Member States and CALLS FOR Member States to support the Rural Futures Program as it provides opportunities for youth employment and fosters rural transformation;
NOTES the progress made in the development the NEPAD Policy Framework on Youth Employment in Africa;
COMMENDS the Government of Germany for the support provided to the NEPAD Skills Development Initiative which is expected to act as a catalyst for entrepreneurship development and URGES the NPCA to ensure a speedy implementation of the project;
TAKES NOTES of the importance of the African Rural Development Forum as a platform to engage on dialogue on inclusive development and rural transformation as well as on south-south cooperation to be held the second half of 2016. REQUESTS African members states, FAO, IFAD and other development partners to fully support and participate in the Forum;
RECALLS Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.579 (XXV) and NOTES WITH APPRECIATION the outcomes of the Dakar and Johannesburg regional dialogues and training on contract negotiation and tax policies and administration in the extractive industry; and REQUESTS the NEPAD Agency to continue the exercise as well as the implementation of the outcomes of Dakar and Johannesburg, including an in-depth understanding of the value chain of the extractive industry;
In furtherance of the NEPAD Natural Resources Governance Programme, TAKES NOTE of the NEPAD partnership between OECD, NEPAD and GIZ on the (Strengthening Assistance for Complex Contract Negotiations) CONNEX Initiative and REQUESTS this partnership to strengthen knowledge-generation and exchange as well as capacity development for African countries and AU institutions, in particular the NEPAD Agency;
NOTES WITH APPRECIATION the support extended to African Union Member States and Regional Economic Communities under the NEPAD Climate Change Fund and REAFFIRMS full support to NPCA to seek accreditation to the Green Climate Fund as a Regional Implementing Entity. ALSO CALLS ON development partners and member states to contribute financially to the NEPAD Climate Change Fund;
WELCOMES the adoption of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and COMMENDS the effective collaboration between the NEPAD Agency, African Union Commission, African Development Bank and the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in hosting the African Pavilion at the 21st Conference of Parties (COP 21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris, France WHILST NOTING the successful outcomes of the Africa Pavilion and Africa’s overall participation at COP 21;
APPRECIATES the technical and financial support provided by the NEPAD Agency to Africa’s climate change negotiating bodies, particularly the African Group of Negotiators during its preparatory and consultative meetings towards the 21st UNFCCC Conference of Parties and REQUESTS the NEPAD Agency to continue to provide
technical support to member states in implementing and monitoring the outcomes of the Paris Climate Agreement and to provide similar support towards COP22 in Morocco;
COMMENDS the African Union Commission, the NEPAD Agency and the AfDB including key strategic partners and the private sector for successfully holding the first PI DA Week held at the Headquarters of the African Development Bank in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire; TAKES NOTE of the Report of the Council for Infrastructure Development (CID) under the Institutional Architecture for Infrastructure Development in Africa (IAIDA) and CALLS FOR the institutionalization of the PIDA Week events. WELCOMES the proposal of Dr. Akinwumi ADESINA, President of the African Development Bank Group, to host the PIDA Week events annually;
COMMENDS the NEPAD Agency for establishing the Continental Business Network (CBN) and WELCOMES the efforts made to involve the private sector in PIDA implementation through the CBN. NOTES that the CBN as a platform will facilitate private sector participation in developing and financing infrastructure across the continent. THEREFORE CALLS ON the African Union Commission and the NEPAD Agency to work with private sector organisations to further the infrastructure dialogue between the CBN members and governments at the highest level;
RECALLS the Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.540 (XXIII) approving the formation of the Africa Global Partnership Platform (AGPP) and COMMENDS H.E President Macky Sall for hosting the inaugural plenary session of the AGPP in Dakar, Senegal. NOTES with interest the AGPP thematic focus of agriculture and infrastructure as key sectors for Africa’s development and FURTHER WELCOMES the AGPP as a high- level dialogue on shared responsibilities between Africa and its development partners;
CALLS UPON the Member States, the G7 and G20 together to support the operations of the AGPP Secretariat so as to ensure that the AGPP serves as a dynamic interlocutor between Africa and bodies such as the G7 and G20 on Africa’s policies and priorities with respect to economic growth and social development. NOTES WITH APPRECIATION the leadership of H.E President Macky Sall in engaging his G7 and G20 counterparts on Africa’s inclusive development;
On implementation of the Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa (STISA 2024), COMMENDS the progress made in the establishment of the Alliance for Accelerating Excellence in Sciences in Africa (AESA). ENDORSES the request by the Technical Specialised Committee (STC) on Education, Science and Technology that the NEPAD Agency working with the AUC should advise Member States and RECs on matters of technology prospecting including regulatory and ethical requirements that need to be put in place in order for the continent to benefit from emerging technologies for economic development and environmental sustainability. FURTHER DIRECTS the NEPAD Agency to establish a system for obtaining expert contribution on the matters of technology development, acquisition and deployment for economic development;
On implementation of the Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Plan for Africa (PMPA), COMMENDS the progress made in the implementation of the African Medicines Regulatory Harmonization (AMRH) Programme especially in the East African Community (EAC) region. THEREFORE CALLS UPON the NEPAD Agency, the West Africa Health Organization (WAHO) and the West Africa Monetary Union (WAEMU) to expedite the roll-out of the AMRH Programme in the West Africa Region in 2016 and present a progress report on implementation at the HSGOC in January 2017;
In supporting efforts towards ending Tuberculosis by 2030; COMMENDS the Kingdom of Lesotho, Republic of Malawi, Republic of Mozambique and Republic of Zambia for their willingness to collaborate in tackling the burden of TB with emphasis on the mining sector while strengthening critical dimensions of health systems. FURTHER COMMENDS the NPCA for collaborating with the East, Central and Southern Africa Health Community (ECSA-HC) to support implementation of the project in the four member states and the World Bank for the technical and financial support for the project. ACCORDINGLY REQUESTS the NPCA in partnership with ECSA-HC, and in collaboration with SADC to facilitate implementation of the regional components of the project. In the process of implementation, facilitate piloting of innovative approaches to TB control and utilise lessons learnt among the four countries to out-scale to more countries. CALLS UPON Member States, regional bodies and international partners to support implementation of the project and scale up effort including expansion to other equally affected countries;
CONGRATULATES the President and the people of the Republic of Zimbabwe for establishing the Pan-African Minerals University of Science and Technology (PAMUST) which aims to contribute to building skills in mineral resources beneficiation and improve the quality, productivity, and competitiveness of the African mining industry; FURTHER CALLS UPON the NEPAD Agency to support the establishment of PAMUST; and REQUESTS the African Development Bank and private sector to support PAMUST;
CONGRATULATES the countries that have been declared free of Ebola during the third and fourth quarters of 2015 and CALLS UPON the NEPAD Agency to continue mobilizing partners and resources to continue with the work on developing and testing vaccines and therapies for Ebola Virus Disease and other emerging diseases;
COMMENDS the NEPAD Agency for establishing an online platform that will promote learning and foster information and knowledge sharing for Africa’s transformation. CALLS UPON the NEPAD Agency, in collaboration with other partners, to support member states and RECs to effectively use the online learning and knowledge exchange platform. FURTHERMORE, URGES the NEPAD Agency to facilitate systematic learning and sharing knowledge and expertise among RECs and Member States around pertinent issues obtaining to Africa’s transformation. The platform is available on http://www.nepad.org;
REQUESTS the NEPAD Agency to strengthen its think-tank function as stipulated in its mandate in order to effectively inform development discourses on the continent and guide the implementation of continental development frameworks, drawing on best practices;
IN GENERAL EXTOLS the enriched quality of the technical work of the NPCA under the leadership of the Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Ibrahim Assane Mayaki.