UPF Participates In African Union Summit In Niger

Written by UPf-Africa

Thursday, July 4, 2019

Niamey, Niger - About 4,500 delegates and guests, including 32 heads of state and over 100 government ministers, attended the 12th Extraordinary Summit of the African Union, held from 4 to 7 July 2019. Dr. Thomas Walsh, President of UPF International. Dr. Tageldin Hamad, Vice President of UPF. UPF-Africa Chair Kathy Rigney. UPF West Africa Executive Director Paterne Zinsou was invited by the Government of Niger to the AU summit as an NGO observer. During the Summit, UPF-International co-hosted a side event to empower African youth.

 The 2019 AU Summit was verry special and historic as African countries launched the "operational phase" of a landmark free trade agreement called the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). It is the largest trading bloc since the World Trade Organization was established in 1994. The AU estimates that the deal, which reduces tariffs between African countries, will increase intra-African trade by 60% by 2022. African countries currently trade 65% of their trade with European countries, while only about 16% of their goods and services are traded with European countries.

AU Commission Chairman Moussa Faki said, "An ancient dream has come true. The founding fathers must be proud," he added, adding that this would create "the world's largest trading area." President of Niger H.E. Mahamadou Issoufou described the agreement as "the greatest historical event for the African continent since the establishment of the Organization of African Unity in 1963", referring to the predecessor of the AU. The African Annalsyt of the Eurasia Group, Amaka Ankh said that while the AfCFTA was "still a long way to go on track", it was an important and positive step.

During the summit, the UPF delegation had the opportunity to meet with many high-level leaders and heads of state. Tageldin Hamad was impressed with the organization of the summit, commenting: "The compliments come from the President and Government of Niger." In anticipation of renewed cooperation and economic and social progress across Africa.