Egypt stresses peace, development in EU-AU ministerial meeting

CAIRO – 28 October 2021: Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for African Affairs Hamdy Loza attended Tuesday the second meeting of the foreign ministers of the African Union (AU) and European Union (EU) member states in the Rwandan Capital, Kigali, according to a press release by the ministry Thursday.

The deputy minister stressed the importance of building upon the outcomes of the 2017 EU-AU Summit (the fifth of its kind) that took place in Abidjan, Cote D'Ivoire. The summit's recommendations focused on securing funding for structural change, sustainable change, development, investment in humans, particularly education, science, and skill building, as well as the reinforcement of security, peace, governance, and freedom of movement and migration.

Equally, Ambassador Loza asserted achieving permanent peace on the continent through a comprehensive approach to the concept of peace. That approach should include security of natural resources, food security, economic security, and economic integration through the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).  

The Egyptian deputy minister of foreign affairs pointed out that the fair distribution of anti-COVID-19 vaccines, the localization of drug manufacturing, and the upgrade of African industrial capabilities will contribute to achieving the goals of the African-European partnership.

Concluding his speech, Ambassador Loza showcased Egypt's Africa-backed aspiration to host COP27 (UN Climate Change Conference 2022) on behalf of the continent in 2022.

The ministerial meeting was chaired by AU Chair, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell.

The first ministerial meeting since the last summit was held in 2019, while that second one's purpose is the preparation for the Sixth EU-AU Summit scheduled for early 2022 in Brussels, according to the website of the European Council.