The seventeenth Regional Coordination Mechanism for Africa concludes with Renewed commitment by the AU and UN regional offices to strengthen cooperation ties for result base partnership

The seventeenth Regional Coordination Mechanism (RCM) for Africa concluded on Sunday 3rdApril 2016 at the United Nations for Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) Conference Center in Addis Ababa Ethiopia. The meeting evoked solid recommendations for strengthening of partnerships between the African Union (AU) and the United Nations (UN) agencies and regional offices in Africa for more accountability, progressive monitoring and reporting systems on the implementation of the aspirations for both the Africa Agenda 2063 in alignment with the Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals at national, regional and continental levels. This is aimed to ensure that the African population is the beneficiary as both agendas are intended to create a better continent of the “The Africa We Want”, for an integrated, prosperous and peaceful place while positioning Africa as a key player in the world arena.

H.E. Mr. Erastus Mwencha, Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC), Co-Chaired with the UNECA the closing ceremony of the 17th RCM for Africa that led to the adoption of the outcome document of RCM. In his closing remarks Mr. Mwencha expressed that it was a good opportunity for the AU/UN cluster members to consolidate their respective efforts in the RCM and the need for alignment between Africa's priorities and interests encapsulated in the Agenda 2063 with the UN 2030 development agenda.

The Deputy Chairperson underscored the significance of raising global awareness through an efficient communication strategy for the RCM as Africa contributes to the implementation of agendas, setting out sustainable development goals, and appreciating the similarities of the SDGs and Agenda 2063 with shared common aspirations of structural transformation for the continent.

Mr. Mwencha further recognized that there are a host of examples of joint action by the UN system and the African Union and Regional Economic Communities that show that much more is achieved through coordinated activities than acting in parallel. These include the final push during the last five years of the MDGs to ensure that better results are achieved at continental level, work between RECs and the sub-regional mechanisms, and issue- based cooperation on such matters as the fight against HIV, AIDS, Malaria and TB, as well as against Ebola; and on gender equality, among others.

“This joint work should and must be consolidated, as the UN, the African Union and RECs seek to ensure that the implementation of the SDGs and Agenda 2063 starts off on a proper footing. We must therefore address the challenges facing the current RCM clusters, that inhibit their efficient functioning, and which the new reconfigured cluster system should address”, concluded the AUC Deputy Chairperson