South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa
South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, has assumed the leadership of the African Union (AU).
Ramaphosa took over the presidency from Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, the Egyptian president, in the one-year revolving presidency of the AU.
President El- Sisi counted Egypt’s achievements during its presidency of the AU last year, saying it managed to reinforce the state of security and peace on the continent.
He indicated that through the principle of “African solutions to African problems,” he undertook initiatives including hosting two consultative summits on Libya and Sudan to reinforce the state of peace despite challenges of terrorism and extremism, especially in the Sahel region and the Horn of Africa.
Taking over the gavel from his predecessor, Ramaphosa told the gathering at the 33rd Assembly of the Heads of State and Government of the African Union that women and girls empowerment would be among his priorities.
“We should liberalize women from the shackles of patriarchy,” he said. “You cannot have revolution without women, you cannot have democracy without women,” he said.
He pledged to work for women’s financial and economic inclusion, calling on his fellow Heads of State to support Ghana’s President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to ensure the interests of women are mainstreamed into the financial and economic inclusion agenda of the AU.
“We indent to work closely with President Akufo-Addo of Ghana to ensure the interest of women are mainstreamed … the years 2020 to 2030 has been declared the years of African women financial and economic inclusion,” he said.
The AU president also called for a preferential and customs regime benefiting women advocating for an increase in public procurement going to women owned businesses.
He said the African Union declared the next 10 years as a decade of women empowerment and 2020 the year of gender inclusion.
President Ramaphosa noted that it was time the surge of gender based violence on the Continent is addressed.
“We must address the surge of gender based violence that is so rife in our Continent. We want to focus on ensuring that there is accountability to global gender commitments. We have heard the calls of the women and the girls of Africa for liberation from the shekels of patriarchy violence and economic exclusion,” according to him.
Women deserve at the very least 50% representation in all structures in the continent,” he said, gaining the applause of thousands inside the Mandela Hall.
The 33rd Assembly of the Heads of State and Government of the African Union adopted the theme of Silencing the Guns: Creating Conducive Conditions for Africa’s Development.
Security situations across the continent take centre stage during the two-day discussions that are now ongoing behind closed doors.
From Jamila Akweley Okertchiri, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia