Ghana hosts AU Ministerial Committee Meeting

Accra, Oct. 4, GNA - Ghana is to host the next African Ministerial Committee Meeting from October 26 to 27, this year in Accra, Mr Akwasi Osei Adjei, Minister of Foreign Affairs announced on Thursday, when he met African ambassadors in Accra.

The Ministerial Committee is made up of 10 members and the Chair of the Executive Council is Ghana.

Mr Osei Adjei, said in consonance with standard practice of the African Union, two members were drawn from each of the five sub-regions of the continent.

"West Africa is represented by Nigeria and Senegal, East Africa has Ethiopia and Uganda, Southern Africa has Botswana and South Africa, North Africa is represented by Egypt and Libya and Central Africa has Cameroon and Gabon serving on the Committee".

Mr Osei Adjei said the meeting would undertake substantive discussions on its terms of reference taking into consideration the preamble of the Accra Declaration.

These would among other things highlight the creation of a United States of Africa as the ultimate objective of the African Union and the need to accelerate the economic and political integration of the continent.

It would also look at the need for collective response to major global issues and the creation of an African Common Market and involvement of all African people in the economic and political integration of the continent.

Mr Osei Adjei said the Ministerial meeting would be built on the earlier work done by the Union Government concept, make resources available to the audit panel to synthesize the debates of the ministerial committee and prepare concrete draft to inform subsequent discussions.

Ghana as the African Union Chair was keen to ensure that the heads of state and governments had a tangible basis for discussing the Union Government during the next ordinary session of the Assembly. "Ghana is proceeding to move the Union Government project in a spirit of openness, transparency and inclusiveness to ensure that the decision-making process by all member states would be informed by all available facts", he intimated.

The Minister told the Ambassadors that at the first meeting of the Audit Panel four working groups were established and appointed coordinators to deal with issues such as the Abuja Economic Treaty, the Constitutive Act and the Political and Economic integration process.