The President of the Republic of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, expressed that in order for the African Union (AU), to be able to further develop and reach the desired level, political will is needed to implement some of the programs that have been agreed upon.
President Kagame returned to this on Monday, February 17, 2023, when he joined the Heads of State and Government of the African continent, in the opening of the 37th regular meeting of the AU, In this meeting held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, President Kagame presented to the Heads of State and Government, a report that shows where the reforms that have been directed since 2016, by the African Union have been implemented.
The Head of State indicated that some of the achievements include the fact that the African Peace Fund has reached tangible assets, He said, “Among the achievements we can show is the reform of the peace fund. Almost $400 Million has already been raised. For this reason, for the first time the United Nations Security Council recently decided to fund three-quarters of the AU’s peacekeeping operations.”
President Kagame explained to the Heads of State and Government who had gathered at the meeting, that in order for this to be achieved, it was due to the fact that the AU has reformed its operations, He said, “This was achieved due to the fact that today the United African Community is aligned, unlike in the past, and we are increasingly understanding our common interests, and how we should advocate for them.”
The Head of State pointed out that although some things have been achieved, the AU still has a long way to go to be able to be as strong as desired, He said, “We still have a long way to go for the African Union to be as strong as we want it to be. Where we should be as a continent is where we are. The only thing that appears to be missing is the political will to implement our own commitments.”
President Kagame, who ended his tenure as the head of the reform team in the AU, was replaced by President William Ruto of Kenya, took the time to thank the confidence he received during his eight-year journey, and said that the achievements should continue to push the changes needed to make the AU more prosperous.
The conference, which is due to conclude this week, will also discuss improving the quality of education on the continent, which is the main theme of the conference, which is themed “Educating Africans for the 21st Century Building Sustainable Systems” of teaching, quality education and education that is relevant to the African continent.”
Mussa Faki Mahamat, while returning to AU’s 2024 theme on education, said “I am a teacher’s child. I was raised by a teacher. Ignoring teachers is ignoring the future of countries and people.” In addition to the education sector, there was also discussion on increasing the speed of development, striving for peace and security on this continent.
The meeting also included a handover ceremony between the President of Comoros, Azali Assoumani, who had been in charge of the AU for a year, and Mohamed Ould Ghazouani of Mauritania, who replaced him.
