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UN Support to AU and NEPAD [The Regional Consultation Mechanism]
News and Updates
Addis Ababa 24 October 2008 (ECA) - UN agencies and organizations met here this week have agreed on broad coordinated actions to respond to the challenges posed to Africa by rising food and oil prices, the global financial crisis, climate change and agricultural subsidies in rich countries.
The agencies and organizations met from 21-22 October in the framework of the Regional Coordination Mechanism (RCM), which was established pursuant to General Assembly resolution 57/7, to coordinate the work of UN agencies and organizations in support of the African Union and its NEPAD programme.
The UN agencies and organizations that met included UNFPA, ECA, UNDP, UNEP FAO, IOM, DPA, DPI, ESCWA, UNESCO, UNICEF as well as the World Bank, African Union Commission and the NEPAD Secretariat. The meeting was co-chaired by the deputy Secretary-General of the UN, Ms Asha-Rose Migiro and the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC), Mr. Jean Ping.
The Organizations agreed that one of the critical reasons for the food insecurity in Africa was the displacement of the population due to conflicts and the reliance of refugees on food aid. The agencies and organizations called for the development of value chains around some strategic commodities as recommended by the Abuja Summit on Food Security. “The value chain approach provides the possibility for better collaboration among UN agencies and its various clusters which are aligned to the priorities of the African Union and its NEPAD programme,” the agencies and organizations said in their Outcome Document.
The organizations resolved to improve their cooperation , harmonization and synergy and coherence, stating that these were central to the effectiveness of the operations of the cluster system of the RCM.
Effective implementation of cluster activities depends on the capacities of the various stakeholders, including regional and sub regional institutions in Africa which have limited capacity to undertake complex and multifaceted activities, they said.
Accordingly, the organizations concluded that there was a “strong need for coordinated UN-wide support in the area of capacity building of the key players in the continent, including at the levels of African Union Commission, Regional Economic Communities, NEPAD Secretariat, and other African organizations”.
They called on all RCM clusters to work collectively to assist all stakeholders to build capacity. “Instead of individual efforts, the focus should be on joint efforts and how to support as “One UN”,” the agencies and organizations said.
They also agreed to support efforts to enhance the relationships between the UN and African regional and subregional organizations, and to strengthen the RCM Secretariat based at the ECA. Background documents and presentations made during the meeting is available here.
The RCM Secretariat launched an online discussion on the theme “Integration of NEPAD into the Processes and Structures of the AU”, on 23 September 2008. The online discussion is being organized in response to the request of the NEPAD Coordinating Unit for inputs from countries and partners during the HSGIC meeting in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. The online discussion will run for the period 23 September 2008 – 15 October 2008. The purpose of the online discussion is to obtain views, suggestions, and recommendations on the ongoing integration of NEPAD into the AU Structures and Processes as well as its implications for the UN System-wide support to the AU and its NEPAD programme. The results of the online discussion will be submitted to the NEPAD Coordination Unit at the African Union Commission responsible for managing the integration process. The background note for the online discussion can be accessed here.
Addis Ababa 16 September 2008 (ECA) - About 90 experts from the African Union Commission, NEPAD Secretariat, Regional Economic Communities and various UN agencies and organizations concluded a two-day meeting from 16-17 September 2008, to review an independent report on "Measures to Enhance the UN Regional Consultation Mechanism (RCM) in Support of the African Union and its NEPAD programme". The Deputy Executive Secretary of UNECA welcomed all the participants at the beginning of the meeting and said that it had become necessary to re-examine how to make the RCM work better in the light of its expansion to include the AU Commission, RECs and NEPAD Secretariat. The welcoming address was followed by opening remarks from H.E. Advocate Bience Gawanas Commissioner for Social Affairs, African Union Commission, Mr. Bankole Adeoye, Coordinator, External Relations and Partnerships, NEPAD Secretariat and Hon. Beatrice Kiraso, Deputy Secretary General, East African Community. The meeting deliberated on the report provided by the consultant Dr. Alioune Sall on how to enhance the functioning of the RCM of UN agencies and orgnaisation working in Africa, with a view to accelerating the implementation of NEPAD and the UN-AU Cooperation programme. The meeting also provided a platform for participants to share views and experiences and reach a consensus on specific, practical and action oriented recommendations. All the documentation on the review meeting is available here. The draft report of the meeting will be shared with participants as soon as possible.
The 35th NEPAD Steering Committee Meeting was held at the Headquarters of the NEPAD Secretariat in Midrand, South Africa on 21 - 23 August 2008. The meeting was chaired by Mr. Newai Gebreab, Ethiopian Representative on the Steering Committee and was well attended by representatives of the HSGIC, the African Union Commission, the RECs and strategic partners including ECA and AfDB. The meeting welcomed the new members of the Steering Committee – Madagascar, Sudan, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia and Benin. The meeting also deliberated on the 34th Meeting of the NEPAD Steering Committee Meeting, activities of the NEPAD Secretariat, activity reports by RECs, ECA and AfDB, outcomes of the 19th HSGIC, integration of NEPAD into the AU, and Africa’s External Partnership issues. Regarding the integration of NEPAD into the AU, the meeting was informed that:
- it is in the process of collating the activities leading to the process of recruitment expecting the new CEO to be endorsed by the Summit in January 2009,
- the TOR for the Study on the Integration of NPEAD into the structures and processes of the African Union has been finalized and advertised with the hope to identify the consultant by early September and
- there are indications that the temporary host country agreement with the South African government could be finalized soon.
The background documents including the final ToR for the study on the Integration of NPEAD into the structures and processes of the AU can be downloaded here.
The Health and HIV/AIDS sub cluster met on Monday 28 July 2008 to discuss the draft outcome document of the Kiruftu retreat and implications for the sub cluster, the next steps for Social Policy Framework, and the working mechanisms for the sub cluster. For further information on the sub-cluster meeting contact Mr. Abdoul Dieng, Regional Adviser, African Organizations, UNAIDS-Ethiopia.
The Human Resources Development, Employment, Health and HIV & AIDS Cluster organized a retreat in Kuriftu, Debre-Zeit, Ethiopia from 18 – 20 July 2008. The retreat was organized within the framework of the United Nations Ten-Year Capacity Building Programme for the AU, and the quest for the United Nations system to align the current cluster arrangement with AU priorities and programmes as recommended by the 8th Meeting of the Regional Consultation Mechanism (RCM). The objective of the retreat was to appreciate and learn together about the AU-UN partnership, overall frameworks and modalities of work; to review and discuss the current Cluster arrangement while sharing, learning and brainstorming on modalities to align the cluster to reflect the AU priorities and programmes and the evolving Ten-Year Capacity Development Programme; and to reach consensus on a Joint AU-UN 3/5 Years Strategic Plan with concrete priority areas of collaboration for 2009, in support of the AUC and the Human and Social Development priorities. The draft outcome document and other retreat documentation can be downloaded here.
On 17 July 2008 the Urbanization, Population and Environment Cluster organized a meeting to discuss the structure of the cluster, business plan and calendar of meetings. Click here access the report of the meeting.
The 19th Summit of the Heads of State and Government Implementation Committee (HSGIC) of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) was held in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, on 29 June 2008 under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
During the meeting, the acting Chief Executive Officer of NEPAD Secretariat, Ambassador S. Olukorede Willoughby, briefed the Heads of State on the outstanding issue of host country agreement for the NEPAD Secretariat, the rising food prices, the status of integrating NEPAD into the AU structures and processes and the need for an effective preparation for the Hokkaido G8 Summit in July 2008. The full Activity Report by Ambassador Willoughby and other documentation for the 19th HSGIC Summit can be accessed here.
Regional Consultation Mechanism and Thematic Clusters
The Regional Consultation Mechanism has established nine thematic clusters around the priority areas of NEPAD, to serve as an operational framework for UN regional support to Africa and as a reporting mechanism to the General Assembly. The nine thematic clusters are:
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