ABIDJAN,
Ivory Coast, March 26, 2021/ -- The African Union (AU) has welcomed the
Democratic
Republic of Congo as the newest member of its African Peer
Review Mechanism. This took place during the AU’s 30th Forum of Heads of
State and Government on Thursday.
The meeting included
presentations on ongoing or imminent reviews of governance and other
spheres in a number of countries, including Liberia, Sierra Leone,
Zambia and Kenya. The African Peer Review Mechanism is a voluntary
mechanism that enables AU members to provide and submit to evaluation at
local, national and continental levels.
In his opening remarks,
South African President and African Peer Review Mechanism Chairperson
Cyril Ramaphosa thanked the assembled heads of state for their political
leadership. “I am certain that the mechanism will be a vital instrument
for the achievement of Africa’s social and economic goals as enshrined
in the AU’s Agenda 2063 and the UN’s Agenda 2030,” he said.
Improving
governance, tackling corruption and upholding human rights are central
to the Democratic Republic of Congo’s governance program, said DRC
President Felix Tshisekedi, adding that his government welcomed external
review and support of its policies. “By joining the African Peer Review
Mechanism, we hope to get the support of our peers in the review of our
practices regarding good governance, which is a prerequisite for
development.”
The summit covered an upcoming peer review of
Liberia; the discussion of a gap analysis of Sudan; two reviews of
tourism and mineral resources governance in Zambia; a targeted review of
Sierra Leone’s national response to the Covid-19 pandemic; and peer
reviews of progress reports for Kenya and Mozambique.
African
Development Bank President Akinwumi A. Adesina joined heads of state at
the virtual meeting. “Africa will recover, but that recovery will
require much strengthened governance at all levels, including decisive
actions to end illicit capital flows and ensure more transparent
governance over the management of Africa’s vast natural resources,” he
said.
Adesina congratulated Felix Tshisekedi on his
country’s decision to join the African Peer Review Mechanism and
emphasized the Bank’s commitment to the mechanism. The African
Development Bank recently approved a new economic governance strategy
that will guide its engagements in the sustainable economic development
of African countries.
“Through our African Peer Review Mechanism
institutional support project, the African Development Bank will
continue to very strongly back efforts to enhance the efficiency,
effectiveness and relevance of the African Peer Review Mechanism,”
Adesina said.
Adesina also addressed the current challenges
heightened by the Covid-19 pandemic, particularly vaccine inequality and
Africa’s rising debt levels. He called for the establishment of an
African Financial Stabilization Mechanism to ward off future exogenous
shocks.
The African Peer Review Mechanism, a specialized agency
of the African Union, was established in 2003. It has five governing
bodies: The African Peer Review Forum, made up of participating heads of
state; the Africa Peer Review Panel, which is made up of academics and
other high-level persons, and which oversees reviews; a committee of
focal points; a national governance council; and a secretariat.
Currently, 41 AU members have joined the African Peer Review Mechanism.
AU
Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat urged African countries that
had not yet acceded to the mechanism to speedily join. “Achieving
universality will strengthen the cause of governance for the continent,
in its full manifestations of political governance, economic governance,
corporate governance, and inclusive and general socioeconomic
development,” he said.
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