The African Union
Commission (AUC) says 75 Heads of States and Governments from AU member states
are expected to attend the 21st African Union Summit, scheduled to hold from
May 19 to May 27 in Addis Ababa.
A statement by the
Commission’s Directorate of Information and Communication in Addis Ababa on
Saturday, said 450 journalists had been given accreditation to cover activities
of the summit, which coincides with the 50th anniversary of the defunct
Organisation of African Unity (OAU) and the 10th anniversary of the African
Union (AU).
The OAU was established
on May 25, 1963 in Addis Ababa on a signature of the OAU Charter by
representatives of 32 governments including Nigeria, while 21 States joined
gradually over the years.
South Africa became the
53rd member on May 23, 1994 after the first multi-racial elections that ushered
in Dr Nelson Mandela as the first democratically elected black African
president of the rainbow nation.
South Sudan became the
54th state to join the AU after securing independence from Sudan on July 9,
2011.
The OAU was formed to
promote the unity and solidarity of African States, coordinate and intensify
their cooperation and efforts to achieve a better life for the peoples of
Africa; defend their sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence.
Part of the objectives
of the OAU was to eradicate all forms of colonialism from Africa; promote
international cooperation, with due regard to the Charter of the United Nations
and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
NAN also recalls that
other objectives of the organisation was to coordinate and harmonise
member-states’ political, diplomatic, economic, educational, cultural, health,
welfare, scientific, technical and defence policies.
The OAU later transmuted
into the AU following the adoption of the Act of the African Union during the
Lomé Summit of the OAU on July 11, 2,000.
Meanwhile, the statement
said activities of the summit and 50th anniversary will kick off in Addis
Ababa, Ethiopia on May 19, with a preparatory meeting of the Permanent
Representatives Committee (PRC) of the AU.
“The year long
celebrations will include a commemorative summit, celebrations, sporting and
cultural events as well as a gala dinner.
“These events will
coincide with the Special Commemorative Summit on May 25, on the theme: “Pan
Africanism and African Renaissance”.
It said the 21st
Assembly of the Heads of State and Government will hold between May 26 and May
27, where adoption of various proclamations will take place.
“The Commemorative
Summit and associated events will be attended by about 75 Heads of State and
Government coming from the continent and beyond.
“Several build up,
parallel and side events will take place in the week of May 19 to May 27, which
include an African Youth and Children’s Intergenerational Forum to be addressed
by Kenneth Kaunda and Sam Nujoma, former presidents of Zambia and Namibia, respectively, among
others.”
The statement said that
the Pan African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PACCI) would also convene a
one-day dialogue on “Securing Africa’s Renaissance: the Role of the Private
Sector in the next 50 years’’.
“In order to ensure a
transparent and all-inclusive commemorative summit and celebrations, the AU
has, so far, accredited about 450 journalists from Africa and beyond.
It said that the
journalists would receive a live feed of all proceedings through the web and
Ethiopian TV based broadcast.
“A media centre and
media hotspots have been set up for the first time in AU history, so as to
ensure better coverage for the event.”
It said that a youth
forum would also be hosted at the AU Conference Centre and Africa Hall (where
the OAU was founded 50 years ago) at the instance of the Economic Commission
for Africa (ECA), between May 22 and May 24.
It said that the PACCI
dialogue would be hosted on May 24 by ECA, while a debate on the adopted theme
of “Pan Africanism and the African Renaissance’’ would hold at the commission’s
conference centre on May 25, with the media, guests and civil society
participating.
The summit would be
concluded with the 21st Summit of the Heads of State and Government, which will
commence on May 26 with an open session and would roundup with the adoption of
proclamations on May 27.
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