Part II
Democratic values and culture would be expanded and entrenched across Africa would no longer be and considered as tentative gestures and figment of imagination is the deep end. Similarly, every African will perceive political elections to be free, fair and credible. Africans will also believe that democratic institutions, processes and leaders are accountable to the electorate.
It is counter imperative to think of that Africans would be able to perceive that the judiciary is impartial and independent and the legislature branch of government is independent and crucial component of the national governance process as the demos demand and a very natural essence for the wellbeing of humanity. All these activities are planned to be achieved by 2023 according to authorities. In the same period, the African Peer Review Mechanism has been assigned to all Member States and its positive impact on governance has to be registered. In this process each leader was to be reviewed by other leaders in a given period of time
Besides regional security, National capital markets will contribute is said to have been considered as a gear shifter for the development of financing and the proportion of aid in the national budget.
AU has made great effort in integrating member countries economically, politically, socially and culturally as its inception. In the economic integration effort, focus has been given to infrastructure and inclusive economic development. Priority has been given to industrialization led by the private sector in trade and sustainable utilization of natural resources.
Growth has not been all inclusive due to limited economic integration. Limited intra-African trade, low integration and infrastructure development are further obstacles to enhancing African competitiveness in the global economies. As a result, it has been difficult to eliminate poverty from Africa. The continent, therefore, needs to forge efforts towards continental integration.
There is also a need to boost intra-African trade and enhance connectivity through infrastructure development. It is reported that much has been achieved up to date, but the road ahead is still a long one. The AU continues to promote policies and programs for inclusive growth and development that generate employment and accelerate progress towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Measures to reduce or eliminate economic and social marginalization will also be promoted in every Africa country.
Support programs will be designed and implemented to encourage member states to adopt policies on inclusive growth and development. The AU is believed to have strengthened continental integration and global cooperation arrangements such as accelerating the creation of Free Trade Area and harmonization of monetary policies. This also includes financial standards, labor market information, customs duties, and other measures that expand market access.
The AU will also redouble its efforts to encourage and boost private sector development through improved business climate in every member country. It will promote trade among member countries through support for the establishment of the African Trade Forum and facilitation of the forum on non-tariff barriers. Regarding private sector development, the AU will support the development and adoption of the Pan African Investment Code.
The above mentioned efforts will be accompanied by the development of private sector strategic plans and facilitation of the establishment of small and medium enterprise Charters in Member States. Special attention will be paid to promoting and facilitating entrepreneurship, through policy development, capacity building and information and experience sharing and exchanges among stakeholders.
The development of economic infrastructure between the various African countries is crucial for the integration of efforts to facilitate people to people relations. This is a precondition for facilitating intra African trade. Inadequate infrastructure is one of the factors impeding the successful integration of the African continent into the global trading system. Other impeding factors include high trade costs, especially for landlocked countries. Poor and inadequate infrastructure accounts for a large share of the transport costs for both coastal and landlocked countries in Africa.
Although progress has been made on infrastructure, there is still a need to accelerate the implementation of efficient and effective operations of the institutions responsible for transportation. The institutions have to ensure mobilization of sufficient resources for infrastructure development that support economic growth in African countries. Measures will be taken to complete the missing links in African transport infrastructure networks.
The AU will also increase the ratification of a number of common civil aviation, and marine and land transport policies and programs. Also, access to efficient, reliable cost-effective and environmentally friendly modern energy services will be promoted. The AU will also seek to ensure improved integrated water resource management for holistic development of Africa. It will strengthen the implementation of programs on tourism and postal services development.
Measures will be taken to harmonize standards, develop guidelines and frameworks, and facilitate their implementation. These measures will promote efficiency in the fields of transport, tourism, postal sector, renewable energy geothermal, hydro, solar, bio-energy and wind. Fossil fuel will be explored and exploited through building harmonized arrangements for the African IT sector and information society. To implement the above mentioned strategies, programs, projects and actions, the AU departments of infrastructure and energy will be responsible.
Each activity and output under the above strategies will be inspected to check if the concerned AU departments and other external partners have fulfilled their duties. Institutions of member states are the principal actors in the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of actions on the ground. Ethiopia is one of the actors in the facilitation of performance of AU departments.
Ethiopia’s role in the AU has made Addis Ababa eligible to be the seat of the Head Quarters. It has also hosted several AU Summit which most of the leaders have attended. As a scholar put it, the AU has coordinated Africa’s rise on the global stage and spearheaded efforts to achieve the vision of a united, prosperous continent. However, recent issues have emerged raising questions whether this historical HQ remains the right location as new challenges emerge.
He referred to a commentary published in Modern Diplomacy advocating the relocation of the HQ of the AU from its current home in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This suggestion fails to deeply consider the historical and strategic rationale for locating the AU where it is. What is skipped is a deep appreciation for Ethiopia’s crucial role in the liberation of Africa and why Addis Ababa was chosen as the seat of the AU. The relocation demands careful consideration of the factors, not an angry reaction to petty challenges.
Historically, Ethiopia has incurred immense costs in its endeavor to fully support the independence movements in countries that had suffered from harsh colonial rule. Ethiopian has helped in laying the foundations for pan-African cooperation. As the only independent African country to repel an Italian colonial invasion at the Battle of Adwa in 1896, Ethiopia came to symbolize independence from alien domination across the African continent. Following that, Emperor Haile Selassie opened the borders of Ethiopia to exiled African freedom fighters from all parts of Africa.
Ethiopian provided them sanctuary to design ways and means for their struggles. Political figures like Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana and Julius Nyerere of Tanzania have received support and guidance from Ethiopia. The country, as the only independent entity in Africa has also contributed troops to help liberate territories suffering from colonial rule.
When the need to establish a pan-African institution, the leaders fully acknowledged the contributions Ethiopia made in locating the HQ of the OAU in Addis Ababa in 1963. They have fully recognized that Ethiopia is the home of African patriotism and independence. As the scholar put it rightly, Ethiopia has continued hosting the AU since it replaced the OAU in 2002, incurring significant costs but gaining no special economic or political privileges in return.
Relocating the HQ now without serious consideration would only discredit the sacrifices and undermine the motives of the founding fathers of the OAU and AU. While Ethiopia faced internal and external challenges, its government has remained strongly committed to pan-African ideals and activities. Ethiopia has invested heavily in mediating conflicts across the region thereby promoting integration within the AU framework. Ethiopia has also contributed the substantial amount of financial and human resources to AU operations.
Ethiopia has remained as determined as ever to the goal of continental unity and cooperation pursued by the AU. Before making proposals for relocating the HQ of the AU, critics must propose concrete support to Ethiopia through its present difficulties rather than forsaking it. Relocating the HQ could seriously hamper the duties and responsibilities of the AU by demanding the transfer of staff and infrastructure to an unknown location. It may gratify short-sighted critics but such measure would imply risks that undermine the foundations of the AU and its access to Ethiopia’s facilities.
A wiser strategy is to constructively engage with Ethiopia to address priority concerns. This is tantamount to affirming solidarity between the AU and Ethiopia in its historic role. This leads to a path that redoubles continental efforts towards conflict resolution and economic development that guarantee stability both in Ethiopia and in the AU member countries.
Currently, Africa is facing immense local and global challenges. These situations does not allow for hasty decisions to relocate the HQ of AU. This would require wisdom in deciding the AU to continue guiding the unity of the continent from within Ethiopia. A gentle and wiser approach would be to uphold the role of Ethiopia through renewed commitment to supporting its stability, addressing the challenges it faces.
Thus, with cooperation between member states, the AU would manage its difficulties from a position of principle based on history, rather than proposals that may compromise and endanger its future effectiveness. This effort would be strengthened by the role the Ethiopian government plays in providing modern facilities for the effective operation of the AU. Currently, the Corridor Development and other IT and infrastructural facilities in the country would promote Ethiopia as the most appropriate seat of AU and other international institutions.
BY GETACHEW MINAS
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD FRIDAY 27 DECEMBER 2024
