Egyptian president urges more efforts to prevent conflicts, speed up development in Africa
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has urged the African Union (AU) to step up efforts to prevent conflicts and accelerate development in Africa.
Speaking during a meeting with AU Commissioner Moussa Faki on Monday, Sisi expressed Egypt’s keenness to continue cooperation and close coordination with the AU Commission to push forward the joint African work in various fields during the Egyptian presidency of the AU.
The two met on the sidelines of the Arab-African Youth Platform in Egypt’s Aswan Province.
Sisi expressed Egypt’s keenness to continue cooperation and close coordination with the AU Commission to push forward the joint African work in various fields during the Egyptian presidency of the AU.
Sisi stressed the importance of exerting efforts to achieve tangible progress in areas of high priority such as economic and regional integration, peace and security as well as institutional reform of the AU. Sisi also added that there was need to intensify AU’s efforts to prevent conflicts and activate the policy for the reconstruction and development in the post-conflict period.
Faki on the other hand, stressed on Egypt’s weight in Africa, saying that it is one of the countries that helped lay the foundation of the principles of the Organisation of African Unity, the first pillar of African joint action. He expressed confidence that the Egyptian presidency would strengthen development efforts in Africa, saying that Egypt would be crucial to the process of reforming the AU in an institutional manner and ensuring security and political stability in the continent.
The first edition of the Arab African Youth Platform was opened on Saturday with the participation of 1,500 youths from various Arab and African countries. The platform is expected to hold various sessions, workshops and roundtable seminars, with the goal of bridging the gap between ‘young promising leaders and top policy and decision makers.’
This conference came only weeks after Sisi took over the AU presidency from Paul Kagame, making it the first time that Egypt has been elected AU chair since the launch of the African bloc in 2002.
