Addis Ababa, August 10, 2023 (FBC) – The African Union Commission (AUC) celebrates the annual African decentralization and local development day (ADD) 2023.
It is a well-established tradition that the ADD’s theme is aligned with the African Union theme of the year. The AU theme chosen for 2023 is “Accelerating the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area” according to African Union Political Affairs Peace and Security (PAPS).
It is stated that the agreement to establish the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was coordinated by the African Union (AU) and signed by its member States in Kigali, Rwanda, on 21st March 2018.
The agreement entered into force on 30 May 2019 after its ratification by AU member States, making it to be the second largest institutionalized free-trade area in the world, just after the World Trade Organization (WTO).
AfCFTA aims to create a single African market for goods and services, with free movement of people and investments; and to promote economic integration and development across the continent, in line with the African Union Agenda 2063.
It is expected that the AfCFTA contributes to raise the percentage of trade between African countries from 16 per cent at the time of its inception, to a minimum of 25 percent within a decade (around 2030) and over 40 per cent by 2045.
In June 2014, the Heads of State and Government meeting at their Summit in Malabo, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, adopted the African Charter on the Values and Principles of Decentralization, Local Governance and Local Development.
This Charter is a genuine unifying instrument adopted by the leaders of African States at the highest level, with a view to encouraging the implementation of decentralized and democratic governance policies in the management of public affairs, in accordance with the stated hared fundamental values of the African Union.
The provisions of the Charter are therefore resolutely consistent with the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and are framed in such a way to ensure that the policies defined at continental level have a concrete impact on the populations at the level of cities and territories.
The African Charter on the Values and Principles of Decentralization, in its article 20 paragraph 4, institutes the commemoration of the African Decentralization and Local Development Day (ADD) on 10 August each year.
The celebration of the ADD by AU Member States is organized under the authority of the Sub-Committee on Decentralization and Local Governance of the African Union Specialized Technical Committee No. 8 on Public Service, Local Governments, Urban Development and Decentralization (AU-STC N8).