[AU-Monitor] Public Forum Before AU Summit and more

[Hakima Abbas]

GCAP Africa Joins the CSOs Coalition to Engage AU on the Continental  
Union Government

The Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP) is a worldwide  
alliance of trade unions, community groups, faith groups, youth and  
campaigners working together across more than 100 national platforms.  
GCAP is calling for action from the world’s leaders to meet their  
promises to end poverty and inequality. In particular, GCAP demands  
solutions that address the issues of public accountability, just  
governance and the fulfilment of human rights as well as trade  
justice, aid quality and quantity, debt cancellation and gender  
equality. In Africa, 34 national coalitions are active and  
participate in GCAP mobilisations and events. For details of actions  
planned in 2007 go to www.whiteband.org.

Read more:
www.pambazuka.org/aumonitor/index.php/AUMONITOR/comments/ 
gcap_africa_joins_the_csos_coalition_to_engage_au_on_the_continental_uni 
on/


African Body Mulls Continent’s Borders

Addis Ababa, June 4 (AFP)

Experts from the 53-member African Union met in Addis Ababa Monday to  
work on precisely marking out Africa’s borders by 2012, officials  
said.  “The time has come to properly and accurately delineate  
borders in Africa,” the bloc’s Peace and Security Council (PSC)  
Commissioner Said Djinnit told AFP.  “A precise and proper  
demarcation of the borders will be the cement of integration in  
Africa.” African borders drawn by colonialists often split ethnic  
groups between countries, as well as sparking conflict over access to  
resources and other feuds.  The two-day talks were to be followed by  
a ministerial meeting on Thursday.


Ghana civil society proposes elected African Parliament

The Statesman newspaper- Ghana, Ayuure Kapini Atafori , 04/06/2007

Ghanaian civil society groups have proposed the setting up of a  
legislating African Parliament directly elected by universal suffrage  
based on proportional representation as one of the means of  
establishing and consolidating United States of Africa.

The convener of Ghana- African Union Civil Society Coalition,  
Emmanuel Akwetey, on behalf of the coalition, also proposed the  
expansion of the Executive Council of the African Union to include  
chairpersons of the ministerial conferences.

Read more:
www.pambazuka.org/aumonitor/index.php/AUMONITOR/comments/ 
ghana_civil_society_proposes_elected_african_parliament/


Papers on the Charter for Democracy, Elections and Governance in Africa

AfriMAP is pleased to publish articles by Solomon Ebobrah, Edward  
McMahon, Nadjita Francis Ngarhodjim and Sekai Saungweme, received in  
response to our call for papers on the Charter for Democracy,  
Elections and Governance in Africa, adopted by heads of state at the  
AU summit in January 2007. The articles – three in English and one in  
French—include comparisons with the ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and  
Good Governance and the Inter-American Democratic Charter, as well as  
critical analysis of the Charter’s content and its enforcement  
measures. Translations will be available soon. In addition, AfriMAP  
has published an article (in English and French) received from Mali  
on the role of civil society in improving governance. All the  
articles are available here: http://www.afrimap.org/papers.php.


Group Cautions on Africa Union Government Formation

This Day (Lagos), 5 June 2007, Abimbola Akosile

Various civil society groups in Nigeria have raised the need to look  
critically at available infrastructure in the African continent  
before a consensus is reached on the formation of an African Union  
Government or a United States of Africa.

This was raised at a recent one-day roundtable organised by  
ActionAid, Nigeria in Abuja. Participants at the roundtable, who were  
drawn from the civil society organisations, media, Ministry of  
Foreign Affairs, the Labour Movement, the academia, ECOWAS, the  
private sector and other stakeholders, noted that the United States  
of Africa is a desirable vision.

Read more:
www.pambazuka.org/aumonitor/index.php/AUMONITOR/comments/ 
group_cautions_on_africa_union_government_formation/


Public Forum before July African Union Summit

Friday June 8th, 5.00 - 6.30pm - Lenana Room, Kenyatta International  
Conference Centre Nairobi

Speakers: Hon. Kembi Gitura, Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs,  
on “What is the Governments’ position on the formation of the United  
States of Africa?”
Dr. Tajudeen Abdul-Raheem, UN Millennium Campaign, on “How can  
Continental Government deliver on the Millennium Development Goals?”

Next month, Africa’s leaders will converge in Accra to discuss an  
ambitious proposal for an African Union Government towards The United  
States of Africa. Yet, there is very little discussion among civil  
society and other non-state actors on the issues it raises. Since  
2001, Africa’s leaders have committed to the Africa Union and their  
Governments as structures for the promotion and protection of  
fundamental political and socio- economic rights together with the  
rights of the marginalized and vulnerable groupings in a series of  
continental protocols, declarations and decisions that offer  
significant meaning to the lives of the majority of African people.  
This public forum will invite public feed back on the implications  
the proposal has for integrating African economies, rights standards  
and projecting a unified voice into the international policy arena.   
For more information contact Mwaura Kaara on +2540204453440, Email:  
mwaura.kaara at gmail.com

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Ms. Hakima Abbas
Policy Analyst, AU-Monitor
Fahamu - Networks for Social Justice
Email: hakima at fahamu.org
Skype: hakima_abbas
www.pambazuka.org/aumonitor
www.fahamu.org





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