Luanda - Angola's ambassador to Ethiopia and permanent representative to the African Union (AU), Miguel Bembe, said on Monday that it is essential to find sustainable alternative solutions to ensure the continuity of activities that depend on financing from the organization's international partners continental.
The Angolan diplomat was presiding over the work of the joint meeting of the Ministerial Committee on the Scale of Assessment and Contributions and the Committee of Fifteen Finance Ministers (F15) of the AU, at ambassadorial level.
He acknowledged that international partners have faced challenges in meeting their commitments to the Program Budget and the financing of peace support operations in Africa in the first half of recent years.
For the current year, he said, the situation is particularly worrying, given that, of the 369.5 million US dollars promised for the period under analysis, 'only 28.8 million dollars, that is, 7.8%, were actually made available'.
He described the situation as uncomfortable and encouraged AU Member States to present concrete and constructive proposals to address the current situation.
He congratulated the Member States that successfully made their statutory contributions and honored their commitment to the Revitalized Peace Fund of the African Union, assuming from now on a reduction in their charges and the maintenance of their contributions to the regular budget of the continental organization.
On the occasion, the representative of Angola at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), highlighted the fact that the meeting took place in a context in which several Member States of the African Union continue to face various economic and financial difficulties, leading them to situations of non-compliance with their statutory contributions.
“This scenario requires a holistic approach between the African Union Commission and the respective countries, encouraging proactive and coordinated actions to implement payment plans drawn up and approved in a consensual manner,” he said.
Despite the difficulties faced by everyone, he added that it was crucial to remember that the smooth functioning of the organization depends on strict adherence to the commitments made in relation to the regular budget and the African Union Peace Fund.
Miguel Bembe indicated that failure to comply with these commitments could contribute to increased dependence on international partners, putting the proper functioning of the African Union at risk.
The report considered at today's Joint Session presents an overview of the situation of Member States' contributions to the 2024 regular budget, in the period from 1 (one) January to 30 June (first semester), including the status of payments arrears to the Peace Support Fund and the regular budget and recommendations on the application of sanctions.
The document also provides information on the status of implementation of payment plans for Member States facing difficulties in paying their quotas, the status of partners' contributions and revenues generated from investment activities and other sources. SC/DOJ
