Kenya promotes changes towards African independence

President William Ruto asserts that a persistent reliance on external partners is in opposition to the pan-continental vision of sovereignty.

In order to position the continent as a new global power by 2063, the African Union (AU) must pursue changes aimed at making the organisation financially self-sufficient, Kenyan President William Ruto said on Sunday.

Speaking in Nairobi, Kenya, during the AU’s fifth mid-year coordination summit, Ruto discussed important topics related to African integration.

The head of an East African nation praised the continental body for its “great work” in monitoring and addressing continuing issues, which helped the continent demonstrate its commitment to long-term fixes.

However, he acknowledged that more must be done, including taking advantage of the AU’s restructure to bring about the “highly desired Pan-African transformation.” The African Union’s Pan-African vision aims to create a continent that is strong on the international arena, united, prosperous, and harmonious under the control of its own people.

“Self-reliance is essential, as is a fit-for-purpose institutional architecture,” Ruto added, noting that more than 60% of the AU’s programme budget is now funded by external partners.

“Our difficult time necessitates an AU that can pursue numerous urgent and crucial interventions utilising internally mobilised resources. Sovereignty and agency have always been at the forefront of the Pan-African movement. Chronic reliance on well-intentioned partners is blatantly at odds with this goal, he insisted.

The African Union (AU) established the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in 2018 with the intention of reducing barriers and promoting trade among member states.

By 2035, it is anticipated that the World Bank’s largest free-trade area will raise 30 million Africans out of extreme poverty and increase earnings by 7%, or $450 billion. Eritrea is the only country that hasn’t ratified the AfCFTA agreement out of the 54 that have so far done so.
The single market agreement’s implementation has advanced, according to Kenya’s president, showing that “African integration is unstoppable and will open doors for unprecedented socioeconomic transformation.”

According to an AU assessment, more than 40% of the 55 member nations fail to make their yearly contributions, making the organization’s existing finance model unsustainable.

The continental group claims that in order to ensure sustainable and member-driven financing of its operations and programmes, it proposes to impose a 0.2% fee on qualifying imports.