Africa-Press – Angola. Permanent representatives of the African Group and the European Union accredited to the United Nations in New York met on Thursday to reaffirm the strategic importance of the long-standing partnership between the two continents.
The meeting held under the theme “Promoting Peace, Prosperity and Human Dignity Together through the UN and Effective Multilateralism,” was framed within the 7th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU), held on November 24 and 25 in Luanda.
It sought to strengthen coordination between the AU and the EU at the United Nations, with the aim to bolster effective multilateralism, based on respect for international law and the UN Charter, promoting the implementation of the results of the 7th AU-EU Summit in the context of the United Nations, focusing on peace, combating terrorism, governance and development.
African and European ambassadors also reflected on the future of multilateralism, including institutional reform, Security Council reform, and strengthening the three pillars of the UN.
They also discussed practical ways for cooperation in United Nations processes related to peace and security, peacebuilding, development financing, and global governance.
In his closing remarks, as the diplomatic representative of Angola, the country holding the rotating presidency of the African Union, Ambassador Francisco José da Cruz highlighted the growing strategic alignment between the main priorities of the two continents, with particular emphasis on the AU’s Agenda 2063 and the European Union’s Political Priorities.
The diplomat highlighted progress made in several areas, particularly in sustainable development, trade facilitation, investment, and capacity building, especially for women and young people.
He also referred to advances in the fields of peace and security, conflict prevention and management, economic diversification, and regional integration, as well as close cooperation in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic and the challenges related to climate change.
Despite the progress, he advocated for joint efforts to address common challenges such as migration, global governance reform, international financial architecture, and food security.
Francisco José da Cruz reiterated that Security Council reform remains an open process until a complete, fair, and transparent reform is achieved that corrects the historical injustice against Africa.
To that end, he stressed that “Africa must be treated as a special case in the process of reforming Intergovernmental Global Governance.”
The ambassador also called for strengthened joint work within the framework of the UN 80 Initiative, to make the organization more effective, efficient, and accountable, reducing fragmentation and duplication of functions.
The diplomat acknowledged the opportunities in intra-African trade provided by the African Continental Free Trade Area, in agriculture, and in the growth of the continent’s young population.
He also highlighted the need to expand mobility and exchanges between citizens of the two continents, ensuring safe, orderly and mutually beneficial migration, as well as promoting youth empowerment through education, skills development and entrepreneurship.
