Africa-Press – Mauritius. The Progress Report of the Republic of Mauritius was presented, today, during the virtual meeting of the 31st Summit of the African Peer Review (APR) Forum of Heads of State and Government, chaired by the President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa.
Established in 2003, the APR Mechanism is an instrument of the African Union (AU) to enable Member States to voluntarily undergo an assessment and review, by their peers, at the level of Head of State, of their governance performance in line with the Continent and international best practices. It aims at promoting political stability, accelerated sub-regional and continental economic integration, economic growth and sustainable development.
The Minister of Land Transport and Light Rail, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, Mr Alan Ganoo, , made the presentation of the Mauritian Report, which was prepared by the National Governing Committee comprising representatives from Government, the private sector, the civil society, non-governmental organisations, regulatory bodies and the Academia, namely the University of Mauritius.
“The Report,” stated the Minister, “demonstrates the commitment of Mauritius to the APR Mechanism process since its accession in 2003 and is a testimony of the country’s efforts to promote good governance and democracy.
” He recalled that performance and progress were measured in four thematic areas such as democracy and political governance, economic governance and management, corporate governance and socio-economic development.
According to Mr Ganoo, the Report factored in the Government Programme 2020-2024, Government’s Vision 2030, the AU’s Agenda 2063, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 2030 Agenda, as well as the realities and evolution of the situation in Mauritius.
He added the APR Mechanism would enable other African States and Government to gauge the progress achieved by Mauritius to, among others, uphold democracy, fight against poverty, and protect children’s rights.
The importance of the APR Mechanism in enabling countries from Africa to collaborate and move forward together in the same direction was also highlighted by the Minister.
“The APR Mechanism facilitates the sharing of ideas and practices, sustaining of democracy and governance, and the consolidation of ties among nations,” he pointed out.
Mr Ganoo declared that the Mechanism made it possible for the Continent to unite with a view to face daunting challenges, like the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change, and take quantum leap together.
Earlier at the opening session of the APR Forum, the President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa, stressed that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was severe, significantly setting back the developmental aspirations of Africa while all resources were being marshalled towards protecting and saving lives.
However, he insisted that the African countries must soldier on and train their focus on health, social, economic and political recovery. Speaking on the APR Mechanism, he highlighted that it was integral to the efforts to meet the aspirations of Agenda 2063 for a prosperous and peaceful Africa.
“We must continue with the good work and spare no efforts to ensure that the APR Mechanism is strengthened, supported, and becomes embedded in everything that we do on our Continent,” underscored Mr Ramaphosa. He, moreover, welcomed and congratulated the Republic of Burundi for becoming the 42th country to accede to the APR Mechanism.
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