Africa-Press – Angola. Angola expressed, Saturday (05), in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), concern about the growing cases of unconstitutional regime changes in Africa using military force and defended the need for “firmer measures” to discourage such actions and hold the perpetrators accountable.
The position was expressed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Téte António, who, in the Ethiopian capital, represents the President of the Republic, João Lourenço, at the 35th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union.
The head of Angolan diplomacy mentioned the last attempted coup d’état in Guinea-Bissau, to whom he reiterated the solidarity of the Angolan Government.
With regard to terrorism and violent extremism, Angola, according to Téte António, defends the relevance of holding the Extraordinary Summit on Terrorism, according to decision number 753 of the 33rd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, February 2020, with the aim of analyzing the impact of this scourge on the continent, in order to identify new strategies leading to a comprehensive and decisive action plan to combat it.
“We support the suggestion made by the African Union Commission to hold this Summit in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, in May, right after the African Union Humanitarian Summit and the Donor Conference, thus allowing to organize these two strategic events in the first half of 2022 ”, declared.
Taking into account the current political context in Africa, the Angolan authorities suggest, however, that the theme of the initiative be expanded and become the Extraordinary Summit on Terrorism and Unconstitutional Regime Changes in Africa.
According to Téte António, with this enlargement, it will be a unique opportunity to discuss a common and firm position against these two scourges that threaten peace and stability and undermine political diversity and inclusion on the continent.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs thanked the Government of Equatorial Guinea for its willingness to host this Summit and reaffirmed Angola’s commitment to working with the African Union Commission in the successful implementation of this Assembly decision.
After referring to the reasons for the absence of the Angolan Head of State at the 35th African Union Summit, Téte António began by congratulating the President of Senegal, Macky Sall, on his election to the leadership of the African Union.
He expressed Angola’s readiness to work with the new president for the success of his mission. The congratulations were extended to the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Felix Tshisekedi, “for the brilliant way in which he has carried out the work of the continental organization”.
Angola is one of the six largest contributors to the African Union budget with 19 million dollars a year, alongside from South Africa, Algeria, Morocco and Nigeria.
The Angolan ambassador to the African Union, Francisco da Cruz, defends that the country should take advantage of this situation to be better represented in the organisation’s structures. The number of vacancies for Angola increased from 39 to 74. Even so, the country has only five permanent employees in the African Union Commission and without positions of responsibility.
On the sidelines of the Summit, the Minister of Foreign Affairs held meetings with the Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations, Amina Jane, and with his Egyptian counterpart, Samem Shoukry, with whom he discussed bilateral issues.
The 35th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union ends today, with the expectation that important recommendations for the continent will emerge from it.
Pandemic increased debt ratio in Africa
The impact of Covid-19 in Africa resulted in a contraction of growth of 2.1 percent in 2020 and an increase in the debt ratio by 10 points of GDP, said, Saturday, in Addis Ababa, the president of the African Union Commission. .
Speaking at the opening of the 35th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, Moussa Faki admitted that the continent will not recover anytime soon “the dynamic growth before Covid-19, due to insufficient funding to compensate for the savings rate.”
The African leader defended the mobilization of financial resources, through debt cancellation, and the search for innovative sources to reduce the “harmful effects” of the pandemic on the economy.
Moussa Faki underlined that the pandemic has brought enormous challenges to the continent and reiterated the need for vaccine production on the continent. At the same time, he pointed out terrorism as another scourge that “has taken on unprecedented proportions on the continent”.
Previously limited to the North of the Sahel and the Horn of Africa, he recalled, terrorism is now spreading to other parts of the continent. For Moussa Faki, the The peace and security situation in Africa calls for a new approach.
The Senegalese Head of State, Macky Sall, who yesterday assumed the Rotating Presidency of the African Union, defended the creation, in Africa, of an industry to satisfy the needs of the continent and help fight pandemics such as HIV-AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.
He said that cancer kills around 700,000 people annually in Africa and 40 percent of the continent’s countries do not have radiotherapy treatment units.
The outgoing president of the African Union, Félix Tshisekedi, considered that the implementation of Agenda 2063 gained momentum in 2021 with the launch of the Free Trade Area in January.
Tshisekedi said it is essential to develop the large Inga dam, stressing that the Congo Basin can provide solutions for human survival.
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh asked the African Union to withdraw Israel’s observer status in July last year. He justified the position due to the “abuses that are being committed by Israel”.
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