Africa: Experts to interrogate the implementation deficit.

Minister calls on African Experts Gathered at ECA to Interrogate the Implementation Deficit.

Addis Ababa , 26 March 2008 (ECA) - African experts should carefully examine why the continent has failed to implement numerous international agreements to which it is signatory to, before charting a way forward on the continent's development, according to Ato Mekonnnen Manyazewal, the minister of state for finance and economic development of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.

The minister made the call while opening the Meeting of the Committee of Experts of the First Joint Annual Meetings of the African Union Conference of Ministers of the Economy and Finance; and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa's Conference of Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development.

Ato Mekonnen acknowledged the importance of developing programmes and policies that address Africa's developmental challenges, but added that several such programmes, agreements and commitments already exist. “As experts, you should conduct a cool-headed analysis of the reasons why we have failed to implement what we have agreed on at several international fora,” the minister said. He said such an analysis would be very important to enable the forthcoming conference of ministers to reach decisions on the way forward.

Addressing the same meeting, United Nations Under-Secretary General and Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (EAC), Mr. Abdoulie Janneh, stated that addressing Africa's emerging challenges in the 21 st Century was an appropriate theme for this conference to ensure that the continent continues on its economic growth trajectory. He cited climate change as a major challenge, stating that although Africa produces a small proportion of green house gases, its citizens are most vulnerable to the consequences. “ It is Africa's poor - those who live on desert fringes, in small fishing villages, next to drying up lakes and rivers - that will feel the most severe effects of climate change, ” he said.

In this regard, Mr. Janneh announced that ECA would be signing a memorandum of understanding with The Energy Research Centre (TERI) during the ministerial conference, to establish an African Center for Climate Change. TERI is headed by Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, who recently won the Nobel Prize for peace in recognition of his work on climate change.

The African Union Commissioner for Economic Affairs, Mr. Maxwell Mkwezalamba, hailed the collaboration between ECA and AU as exemplified by holding the joint annual meetings. He noted some of the key challenges facing the continent, including sustainable growth and employment creation, meeting the MDGs, HIV/AIDS, rising global commodity and food prices and the capable state; and called on the experts to develop concrete proposals for alleviating them. He also conveyed congratulations from the chairperson of the AU commission, Prof. Alpha Konare to ECA on its fiftieth anniversary.

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