With new commitments of an overall amount of more than 75 million Euros in 2023, the African Union Commission (AUC) and the Federal Republic of Germany have successfully concluded their consultations on development cooperation in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The two sides concluded the consultations at the end of October 2023. , according to the press statement from the German Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The new funds will be used for the following priority areas, among others:
– empowering women and youth, as well as promoting gender equality in line with Feminist Development Cooperation (‘three Rs: rights, resources and representation’): for example by facilitating access to credit for female entrepreneurs as part of the African Trade and Investment Development Insurance (ATIDI), protecting women’s rights through the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (AfCPHR), and promoting women’s meaningful participation in political and decision-making processes;
– boosting intra-African trade and regional integration: for example by supporting the development of regional and continental infrastructure projects (NEPAD Infrastructure Project Preparation Facility, IPPF), the upgrading of quality infrastructure and reducing technical barriers to trade as essential
building blocks of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA);
– promoting peace and security, especially regarding crisis prevention and management: for example by supporting good governance in Africa;
– expanding health and pandemic prevention: for example by expanding the cooperation with Africa CDC in the areas of One Health, digital health and by supporting medical and pharmaceutical regulation to support local vaccine manufacturing; as well as,
– and supporting the implementation of die Africa Data Policy Framework.
“These areas are fully in line with the AU’s Agenda 2063 and the new Africa Strategy
of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ),” the statement said.
“Moreover, Germany will provide support to the AU for its membership in the G20, which was agreed at the recent G20-Summit in New Delhi on 9 to 10 September 2023, and of which Germany has been a long-standing supporter. The German support will be in the amount of up to 1 million Euros.”
Birgit Pickel, Director-General for Africa at BMZ and head of the German delegation at the consultations, said: “The AU has been Africa’s voice in the world and our continental partner since its foundation in 2002. We share its vision of an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens.”
“Therefore, it has always been our overriding objective to strengthen and support the AU to achieve its goals, specifically when it comes to implementing the Agenda 2063. In this spirit, I warmly congratulate the AU on its membership in the G20, on the successful organisation of
the first Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi in September, as well as on the remarkable
progress in the implementation of the AfCFTA.”
The AUC’s delegation was headed by Ambassador Fathallah Sijilmassi, Director General of the AUC. The next AU-Germany consultations are due to take place in Addis Ababa in 2025.