Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
On behalf of the African Group in Rwanda and the African Development Bank, I have the honor to welcome H.E. Valentine Rugwabiza, Minister of the East African Community, Ministers, Permanent Secretaries, Ambassadors and members of the Diplomatic corps and business community in Rwanda to this year’s celebration of Africa Day.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I won’t be able to address the relations between Africa and Rwanda, as Rwanda is one of us in the heart of the continent that is why I will speak on the theme of the African Union this year, which is women and Development.
This year is focused on women, being a woman I understand the challenges that women face to find their place in the job market and to meet their family obligations at the same time. However, we know that women around the globe and in Africa went a long way to have a share in developing their nations and also a share in developing themselves. We are in a country where women occupy many prominent positions and gender is not an issue for assuming public office. We are looking forward to see more women assuming the same responsibilities in Africa. Yet, in order to achieve that, we need to focus on the challenges I mentioned earlier… these include countering social values that meant to look down at the role of women in society through education and awareness, fighting domestic violence and punishing those who are involved in harassing women in public space, taking care of maternal health and providing women with tools to support themselves and their families to alleviate poverty.
Alleviating poverty and achieving peace in Africa is possible if we all work hard to meet the Millennium Development Goals. Drawing benchmarks for our achievements and drawbacks is very important in order to reach the aspired goals. And here comes the role of the African Development Bank. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Bank, when years ago 23 then independent African States established the African Development Bank to lead the social and economic transformation of Africa, and the economic integration in the Continent. As Dr. Donald Kaberuka, the President of the Bank recently put it “Fifty years on, and from a very modest beginning, the Bank has grown in stature and maturity, in brand and credibility and its achievements as the continent’s largest financial institution have gone beyond African borders.” In meeting its mandate, the Bank has committed around US$ 110 billion, and leveraged much more in co-financing. Today, thanks to the support of its shareholders, its franchise value, and its strong foundations, the Bank is AAA-rated, with an authorized capital of US$ 100 billion.
The African Group, at this special occasion, wishes the African Development Bank Happy Golden Jubilee Anniversary. We appreciate the collaboration with the African Development Bank Rwanda Country Office and request the Country Representative to send to the President and Senior Management of the Bank our best wishes during this Golden Jubilee Period and for the years ahead.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Through the years, we as Africans came to realize the importance of South- South Cooperation in the development of our continent. The East African Community has gone strides in achieving such cooperation. As for the rest of us, we managed to have many free-trade agreements that helped us a lot in increasing the exchange of trade among ourselves, so the products reach the consumer at very competitive prices. Moreover, machines and tools, used in factories and farms, that can assist in development can reach the markets with affordable prices to all.
In this regard, Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, since he assumed office, has been focusing on the development of the relations between Egypt and our African brothers. He acknowledged that fighting terrorism is one top priority in order to achieve peace and stability that will lead to a healthy environment for investments and development. Egypt managed to assist in freeing the Ethiopian hostages from the hands of terrorists and in collaboration with African States is going to host a tripartite summit in June 2015 in order to bring together the leaders of the 3 free trade blocks in Africa COMESA, EAC and SADC. The meeting is aspiring to look into means to harmonize the rules of the 3 blocks, hence expanding the free trade area in our continent to ease the barriers to trade among ourselves. This will assist a lot in developing our continent to the best of our peoples.
Moreover, the upcoming AU summit in Johannesburg is expected to adopt the first 10 year implementation plan of Agenda 2063, which is a 50 year continental framework aimed at building integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa by 2063.
There are many promising projects to better connect us together like the navigational route from Lake Victoria to the Nile and the road from Cairo to Cape Town. We are confident that the way ahead is paved for us to further cooperate to alleviate the suffering of our people and reach the aspired level of development not only for women but the entire African population.
I thank you for listening and enjoy the party.
Leave a Reply