DECISION ON THE REPORTS OF THE PRC SUB-COMMITTEES
The Executive Council,
1. TAKES NOTE of the Reports of the Permanent Representatives’ Committee (PRC) Sub-Committees;
I. SUB-COMMITTEE ON MULTILATERAL COOPERATION
2. DECIDES as follows:
a) On African Union Strategic Partnerships
3. REAFFIRMS its Decision, EX.CL/Dec.942(XXX), Paragraph A2, which called for the strengthening of the institutional capacity of the Commission (Partnerships Management and Coordination Division) and REQUESTS the Commission to build internal systems and capacity for partnerships management by upgrading the Partnership Division under the Bureau of the Chairperson to a Directorate, which treats in a holistic manner functions of partnerships management, coordination and resource mobilization; fulfils the ability to analyse and negotiate partnership scopes; develops the vision for Africa’s role in the world; and enhances Africa’s voice and representation;
4. REITERATES Executive Council Decisions; (EX.CL/Dec.942(XXX)), of January 2017, (EX.CL/Dec.899(XXVIII)) of January 2016 and (EX.CL/Dec.877(XXVII)) of June 2015, referring to the right of all Member States without distinction to participate in all meetings, activities and events organized within the context of partnerships of which the AU is part, which should be implemented in line with the relevant Assembly decisions;
b) On the Future of the ACP Group and the Post-2020 Cotonou Agreement
5. REQUESTS the PRC, in close collaboration with the Commission and the Group of Ambassadors in Brussels, to accelerate the work of the Task Force and to finalize the African Common Position on the future of the ACP Group and the Post-2020 Cotonou Agreement by May 2018 and to submit it for consideration by an Extraordinary Session of the Executive Council;
6. FURTHER REQUESTS the Commission to expedite the operationalization of the Joint Task Force, and prepare a draft African Common Position on the Post-2020 Cotonou Agreement, with a view to completing the task by March 2018;
7. DECIDES to convene an Extraordinary Session of Executive Council on 19 March 2018 to consider and adopt the African Common Position before the 107th Session of the ACP Council of Ministers planned to be held in Lome, Togo, in May 2018, to finalize a consensus-based ACP Position;
8. ALSO REQUESTS the Commission to identify and avail all necessary resources to successfully accomplish the work of the Task Force without further delay; and ENCOURAGES African Member States of the ACP to attend the meeting at Ministerial Level;
c) On AU - EU Partnership
9. EXPRESSES APPRECIATION to the People and Government of Cote D’Ivoire for the successful hosting of the 5th AU-EU Summit, and calls on the Commission to put in place mechanisms for implementation of the Summit outcomes;
10. CONGRATULATES both sides of the partnership for the successful negotiation of cooperation plans under the AU-EU Summit, which stand to mobilize significant investments for Africa’s development and make tangible progress towards Agenda 2063’s Flagship Projects;
11. REQUESTS the PRC, in close collaboration with the Commission, to negotiate and agree with the EU on the Projects and programmes within the AU-EU Joint Priority areas of cooperation that both sides agree to implement and to report on the outcome of this engagement to the June/July 2018 AU Summit;
12. RECOMMENDS to the Assembly of Heads of State and Government to endorse the Declaration of the 5th AU- EU Summit held from 29 to 30 November in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire;
d) On African Union-Arab Partnership
13. RECALLS its Decision EX.CL/Dec.942 (XXX) of the 30th Ordinary Session of the Executive Council, 25 - 27 January 2017, Addis Ababa, which directed the Commission, in accordance with the principles and decisions of the AU, and in collaboration with the General Secretariat of the League of Arab States, to coordinate and follow up on the timely implementation of the Resolutions of the 4th African Union-Arab Summit, especially Resolution 7, which called for the convening of an Extraordinary Session of the Joint Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, within a period of six (6) months from the date of this Resolution to adopt the joint African Union-Arab Action Plan;
14. REQUESTS the Commission to expedite the organization of an Extraordinary Session of the Joint Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs in advance of the AU June/July 2018 Summit;
15. FURTHER REQUESTS the Commission to engage with the League of Arab States (LAS) to ensure that the Ministerial Meeting of the Coordination Committee of the African Union-Arab Partnership is held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
e) On Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD)
16. EXPRESSES APPRECIATION to the People and Government of Mozambique for the successful hosting of the TICAD Ministerial Meeting in August 2017;
17. REQUESTS the Commission to follow up on implementation of cooperation programmes with the Government of Japan and to present a follow-up Report to the Sub-Committee on Multilateral Cooperation and the PRC;
f) On African Union - South America
18. RECALLS its Decision EX.CL/Dec.942(XXX) adopted at its 30th Ordinary Session held on 25 - 27 January 2017 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, requesting the Commission in collaboration with the PRC to engage in consultations with the South American side with a view to proposing new dates for the African Union- South America Summit, and REQUESTS the PRC, in collaboration with the Commission, to finalize consultations in that regard and report on the outcome to the June/July 2018 AU Summit.
g) On Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC)
19. TAKES NOTE of the announcement by China and South Africa to hold the FOCAC at Heads of State and Government level in September 2018;
20. REAFFIRMS Decision EX.CL/Dec.942(XXX) of January 2017, which instructed the PRC, in collaboration with the Commission, to design mechanisms for the full involvement of the African Union in the effective management of FOCAC; and ENCOURAGES African countries, in collaboration with the Commission, to work closely with the Government of China for deepening cooperation within FOCAC.
h) On African Union - Turkey Partnership
21. APPROVES the holding of the African Union - Turkey Ministerial Review Conference in Istanbul, Turkey, on 11 - 12 February 2018;
22. REQUESTS the PRC, in close collaboration with the Commission and Turkey, to start the preparatory processes for the African Union-Turkey Ministerial Review Conference to be held in Istanbul, Turkey;
II. SUB-COMMITTEE ON STRUCTURES
a) On the Organizational Structure of the African Institute for Remittances (AIR)
23. APPROVES the proposed structure of the African Institute for Remittances (AIR);
24. RECOMMENDS that adequate financial resources be provided to AIR;
25. URGES the Commission to ensure that recruitment is conducted in accordance with the Staff Regulations and Rules and as per the agreed implementation, over a period of three years.
b) On the Organizational Structure of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC)
26. RECOGNIZES the important role of the Africa CDC to strengthen health systems in Member States and respond to social, economic and security threats as a result of disease outbreaks and other public health concerns;
27. COMMENDS the significant progress made thus far in setting up the Africa CDC and its five Regional Collaborating Centres and in response interventions in seven Member States in 2017 to address disease outbreaks including Ebola, Meningitis, Lassa fever, Malaria, Monkey PoxVirus, Cholera, and Plague;
28. APPROVES the proposed structure of the Africa CDC, as it is closely bench marked to similar public heath institutions in the world;
29. URGES the Commission to ensure recruitment is conducted in accordance with the Staff Regulations and Rules over the agreed period of three years.
c) On the amendment of the Organizational Structure of the African Union Inter-African Bureau of Animal Resources (AU I BAR)
30. TAKES NOTE of the importance to update the structure of the AU I BAR to fit current needs;
31. APPROVES the creation of one GSA5 position, an upgrade of a position from P2 to P3 and three reclassifications:
i) Creation of new Human Resources assistant GSA5 position;
ii) Change and upgrade Finance and Administration Officer position P2 to Senior Finance Officer P3;
iii) French to English translator position P3 to be changed to Senior Knowledge Management Officer at the same P3;
iv) Economist P2 position to be changed to Fisheries and Aquaculture Officer at the same grade;
v) Data Management and Communication Officer position P2 to be changed to Communication Officer at the same grade.
32. URGES the Commission to ensure that recruitment is conducted in accordance to the Staff Regulations and Rules.
d) On the Organizational Structure of the Secretariat of the Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC)
33. APPROVES the proposed structure of the Secretariat of ECOSOCC;
34. URGES the Commission to ensure that recruitment is conducted in accordance with the Staff Regulations and Rules over a period of five years.
III. SUB-COMMITTEE ON AUDIT MATTERS
35. REQUESTS the Commission to resubmit the report of the Sub-Committee on Audit Matters for further consideration;
36. APPROVES the audited financial statements of the Union for the year ended 31st December 2016;
37. REQUESTS the Commission to publish the 2016 Audited Consolidated Financial Statements of the Union on the AU website.
IV. SUB-COMMITTEE ON GENERAL SUPERVISION AND COORDINATION ON BUDGETARY, FINANCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS
a) On the Supplementary Budget for the 2017 Financial Year
38. APPROVES a Supplementary Budget amounting to US$ 60,929,714 of which US$3,179,562 is for Operating expenses and US$ 57,750,152 for Programmes, including US$ 4,790,000 for the payment of backlog of death and disability compensations for AMISOM Troops Contributing Countries (TCCs);
39. APPROVES that the Supplementary budget be financed as follows:
i) Operating budget of US$3,093,878 from Member States and US$85,684 from Partners;
ii) Programme budget of US$ 12,532,009 from Member States and the balance of US$45,218,143 from Partners.
40. URGES the Commission to harmonize all allowances across all AU Organs and bring them to the Sub-Committee for endorsement;
41. REQUESTS the Commission to consolidate all the outstanding liabilities of the Union and present them for consideration to the Sub-Committee;
42. FURTHER REQUESTS the Commission to present the AU’s Budget Performance and Implementation Reports;
43. ENDORSES holding of meetings between the Bureau of the Sub-Committee on General Supervision and Coordination on Administrative, Budgetary and Financial Matters, and the African Union Partners Group.
b) On the Supplementary Budget for the 2018 Financial year
44. APPROVES a Supplementary Budget of US$7,580,091 for Programmes;
45. ALSO APPROVES that the Supplementary Budget be financed as follows:
i) The amount of US$4,263,091 from Member States and the balance of US$3,317,000 from Partners.