The President of the Republic of Burundi and current President of the African Union, His Excellency Evarist Ndayishimiye, took part, this Saturday, in the summit of the Heads of State of the founding countries of AUDA-NEPAD (African Union Development Agency – New Partnership for Africa’s Development), organized on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of NEPAD.
Speaking in his capacity as current President of the African Union, the Head of State of Burundi reaffirmed his conviction that peace, stability and development are inseparable. According to him, peacebuilding on the continent must necessarily go hand in hand with concrete actions for the development and well-being of people.” A lasting peace must be accompanied by reconstruction, economic development, social inclusion and opportunities for young people,” he said.
For an Africa more focused on its developmentOn the occasion of this 25th anniversary, Évariste Ndayishimiye called for a new step in the path of NEPAD and, more broadly, in that of African integration. In particular, he called for Africa to be able to finance its own ambitions more effectively, to transform its natural resources locally, to create more jobs and to strengthen its economic integration, in line with the objectives of Agenda 2063 of the African Union.
For the current President of the African Union, the continent must now speed up the implementation of its own initiatives in order to build sustainable, inclusive and opportunity-rich growth for its youth.
At the end of the summit, leaders adopted a historic document called the “Alamein Declaration”. The declaration aims to accelerate the economic integration of the continent, strengthen the role of the African private sector and further promote the use of African financing mechanisms.
Through this new dynamic, African leaders intend to give NEPAD new impetus and strengthen its role in achieving the continent’s development goals.
Twenty-five years after its creation, NEPAD is thus facing a new stage: that of an Africa that intends to rely more on its own resources, strengthen its capacity for transformation and consolidate its unity in order to realize the ambitions of Agenda 2063.