Address of the Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Patrick Mazimhaka, at the Opening Ceremony of AfCSO 2007, Addis Ababa, on 22-24 March 2007

His Excellency, the Foreign Minister of Ethiopia,

Amb. Seyum Mesfin,

His Excellency, Abdoulie Janneh, United Nations Under-Secretary General and ECA Executive Secretary,

The President of CONGO, Renate Bloem,

The President of FEMNET, Mama Koite,

Honourable Delegates,

Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.

It is with great pleasure that I address you on this historic occasion of the African Civil Society Forum (AfCSO) 2007 taking place in Addis Ababa today. This is certainly a very important event for us in the African Union as it marks another critical, but reassuring, milestone in Africa's glorious march towards the consolidation of efforts at mainstreaming civil society participation in the enterprise of regional and global governance.

Let me first of all thank our host, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the Conference of NGOs with Consultative Relationship with the United Nations (CONGO) and the African Women's Development and Communication Network (FEMNET), for their initiative to convene this Conference. I must also acknowledge the work of the Organizing Committee, comprising of representatives of the UN, AU and the coordinating civil society groups, for their inspiring efforts, dedication and support for the hosting of this Conference.

Excellencies, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, permit me to note that the theme of this Forum is appropriate because the juncture we find ourselves today demands that we begin to build mutual partnerships both regionally and internationally as a first step in addressing the many problems that the continent of Africa faces in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). While we can no longer pretend that all is well and continue with our business-as-usual approach to our problems, the time has come for us to give vent to the yearnings and aspirations of the African people for a mutually reassuring partnership in the continent's developmental processes.

This Conference, to my mind, presents an ample opportunity to review our past efforts and to chart new ways of responding to the development needs of the African people. It also calls for new partnerships among countries, institutions and stakeholders in order to ensure joint and collaborative efforts towards the attainment of the MDGs. Most importantly, it calls for the adoption of integrated, time-tested and fast track approaches that have the potential of translating the UN Millennium Declaration into concrete and sustainable projects.

The African civil society community must therefore seize the unique opportunity afforded by this Conference to set action-oriented result for the attainment of the MDGs and help governmental actors to effectively address the problems of development currently besetting the continent. I believe the Forum will in addition provide a platform for representatives of civil society entities to address other issues on the UN and AU agenda, as well as help elaborate an African perspective on the MDGs and enhance the dialogue between NGOs, the UN and the AU.

For us in the African Union, we accepted the invitation to support the organization of this Forum as a mark of our collective desire to forge an enduring partnership with the UN and the global civil society confraternity for common good of the continent. It is in this regard therefore that the African Union recently set in motion the machinery for the election of one hundred and fifty representatives of NGOs, CSOs, social, cultural and professional organizations, as well as trade unions and the academia, from within the continent and the African Diaspora, into the General Assembly of its Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC).

As an advisory organ of the Union, ECOSOCC supports the promotion of an effective partnership between African governments and the African civil society. Already, the African Union Commission has worked out modalities for the ECOSOCC election which are contained in an Election Template currently on display at the ECOSOCC Exhibition Booth outside the Plenary Hall. Plans are also underway to publish this Template in selected dailies with national, regional and continental circulation in order to ensure saturated coverage and the widest participation of the African civil society community. I therefore urge all Delegates to make capital out of this process and the first step in this regard is to stop over at the ECOSOCC Booth and pick up relevant materials on the election, which is scheduled to hold between June and December 2007. It is indeed my firm belief that the ECOSOCC General Assembly provides a unique window for CSOs to add their critical voices to the continent's development agenda.

Excellencies, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, I wish on this note and on behalf of the African Union, to reaffirm our conviction in the strength and capacity of the African CSOs and to reiterate our believe that collaboration between the UN, AU and African CSOs remains the hallmark for achieving the MDGs. While I recognize that the task before us is enormous, it is imperative that we construct an enduring partnership in a framework that would be useful, practical and effective. Consequently, this Conference should mark the beginning of an era of sustained interaction between key political and social actors in the continent and the expected outcome should include a definition of a new African agenda for progress. It is with these expectations in mind that I wish you all useful deliberations and a happy and memorable Conference.

I thank you.