Dakar, Senegal (PANA) – “Response to crisis in Africa must be global and based on the promotion of democratic governance as guaranteed by the African Charter outlined by the African Union,” the Chair of the African Union Commission, Mrs Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, warned in a message she sent Thursday to AU member countries.
“The long conflicts in Africa have not only caused huge losses in human lives on the continent, an economic delay and the deterioration of the environment, but also they have slowed down the democratic process,” she said at the third annual high-level dialogue on democracy, human rights and governance in Africa.
“We cannot achieve lasting peace and national prosperity unless the institutions and systems are representative of all groups in a given society,” added Mrs Dlamini-Zuma.
The dialogue whose theme is “Dropping arms: strengthening governance to prevent, manage and resolve conflicts in Africa”, will enable participants examine the very structural causes of conflicts in Africa and propose political solutions.
Experts say good governance can be enhanced by resolving armed conflicts in collaboration with the African Governance Architecture (AGA).
The choice of the theme is a response to the solemn declaration of the 50th AU anniversary, adopted by the 21st ordinary session of the conference of heads of State and government which, among others, urged African leaders to end all wars in Africa by the year 2020.
According to Mrs Dlamini-Zuma. the current challenges of democracy in Africa are linked to the demographic explosion within youths, unemployment, the socio-economic inequalities, the mismanagement of natural resources and the increasing radicalization of youths.
In that respect, she said to take up those challenges, the quest for inclusive democracy must necessarily be an approach that involves the active participation of the extended African civil society and the other non-governmental actors like the private sector.
“By 2020, Africa exempt from conflicts, will become a totally integrated, united and prosperous continent, peacefully led by its own citizens and representing a lifeblood in the world arena,” she concluded.
She expressed conviction that high-level dialogue will result in prospective, practical and innovative ideas aiming to end the use of arms in Africa by the year 2020.
The meeting was held by the AU bodies which composed the African Governance Architecture (AGA) and its platform (AGP), in collaboration with the Senegalese government.
