15 December 2014: High-level officials discussed the implementation of Agenda 2063, Africa’s vision for economic, human and social development, at the African Union (AU)-Regional Economic Communities (RECs)-UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA)-African Development Bank (AfDB) Coordination Meeting of the Committee of Ministers.

Speaking at the meeting on 12 December 2014, in Sandton, South Africa, UNECA Executive Secretary Carlos Lopes said Agenda 2063 and its first phase, the ten-year economic plan, must be “credible, realistic and technically sound” for African countries to align their development plans to Agenda 2063. He emphasized the importance of moving from consultations to concrete actions, including publishing the vision and defining its first phase of implementation. Lopes also observed that Africa faced similar challenges in aligning its development plans with the post-2015 development agenda, while noting that the “well articulated” Common African Position on the latter agenda would help in this regard.

Noting that Africa has previously developed good documents but failed to implement them, AU Commission Chairperson and chair of the Ministerial Committee, Nlozasana Dlamini-Zuma, urged avoiding the same fate with Agenda 2063 to “create a continent with shared prosperity.” Dlamini-Zuma called for setting benchmarks and targets, and promoting regional coordination to ensure implementation and to realize Agenda 2063. He also suggested including free movement of people and goods and solidarity among Africans in the ten-year plan.

Solomon Asamoah, AfDB, also highlighted the importance of collaboration among African actors to achieve infrastructure, trade and other goals. [UNECA Press Release] [Agenda 2063 Website]