Agenda 2063 Overview

Addis Ababa, February 6, 2020 – On the margins of the African Union 33rd Ordinary Session in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, African Union Member States convened to deliberate on The First Continental Report on the Implementation of Agenda 2063. Moderated by the African Union Commission Deputy Chairperson, H.E Quartey Thomas Kwesi, the ‘Evidence-Based Reporting for Collective Reflection and Coordinated Action on Agenda 2063 Implementation,’ saw reflections on lessons drawn from the implementation and reporting on the Agenda.

“The vision of Agenda 2063 is espoused in inclusive growth, led by its own people. It is a self-authored script. Its effective implementation therefore needs continuous reporting,” the African Union Commission Deputy Chairperson stated.

Speaking on behalf of Côte d'Ivoire’s President Alassane Ouattara, the Agenda 2063 Champion, Minister of Trade and Industry, H.E Souleymane Diarrassouba, said that Agenda 2063 provides a unique opportunity for sustainable development. He added that the Agenda also fosters mutual accountability amongst countries.

“Agenda 2063 is espoused in ‘The Africa We Want,’ as envisioned by our forebears,” Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, South Africa’s Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs remarked. “Our yearning for a united, integrated and peaceful Africa requires the conscious act of planning, as provided by this Agenda,” said Dr Dlamini-Zuma.

The January 2013 African Union Summit adopted Agenda 2063 as Africa’s blueprint and master plan for sustainable development and economic growth of the continent. The continent embarked on this agenda as a 50-year development blueprint through domesticating and implementing it into national and regional development strategies, achieving an aggregate score of 32% against the 2019 targets. 

During the meeting in Addis Ababa, the Agenda 2063 implementation performance dashboard1 was launched. The dashboard showcases quantitative data on the progress made by African Union Member States in the implementation of Agenda 2063 and the global Sustainable Development Goals.

The First Continental Report on the Implementation of Agenda 2063 is a consolidation and evidence-based assessment of country and regional-level progress reports on Agenda 2063, complemented with interventions and results achieved at the regional and continental level.

The African Youth and Agenda 2063

By 2063, the current youth will be the old people - the grandparents and seniors - and the toddlers and infants will be in their forties. This plan is for the youth of Africa and it will only be executed by the Youth of Africa.

COVID19 has given us a rare chance to re-evaluate our food security, manufacturing, health industry and textiles. With global factories shutting down and airports closed, African countries are looking inward to solve their own problems for the first time in a long time. Being the least affected continent thus far, Africa has the rare opportunity to position itself as a global powerhouse in any of the above sectors.

Here are 8 practical ways the youth in Africa can help achieve Agenda 2063:

1. Studying in the relevant fields for self reliance: Health and Medicine, Industry and Manufacturing, Engineering, Textiles, Agriculture and Food and finally Technology and Artificial Intelligence.

2. Creating businesses in the aforementioned fields.

3. Self-educating on gaps in the African market in order to fill them via skill or teaching.

4. Avoiding brain drain i.e coming back to the motherland after studies in order to fill the gaps and grow the continent as opposed to staying abroad.

5. supporting leaders whose manifestos align with Agenda 2063

6. Running for local, regional and Continental government office in order to be on the front-lines of implementing Agenda 2063

7. Disavowing tribalism and embracing unity by a) loving one another b) voting for competence and not tribe c) embracing our cultural diversity as a strength and not a weakness

8. Initiating peace keeping measures through social media, door-to-door education, weapon buy backs, local projects and media.

Joy Makenah is an Intern at The Youth Cafe, a Writer, Programmer and Digital Content Creator