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New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD)

His Excellency Jacob Zuma, President of the Republic of South Africa (centre), is addressing the 33rd Session of NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee, Johannesburg (South Africa), June 2015, with Dr. Mayaki, NEPAD Agency CEO, and Dr. Carlos Lopes, Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa, to his left. Photo credit: AU

What is the NEPAD?

The New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) is a socio-economic development flagship programme of the African Union (AU), adopted by African leaders at the 37th Summit of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) held in Lusaka, Zambia, in July 2001.

NEPAD is thus a vision and framework that facilitates and coordinates the development of continent-wide programmes and projects, mobilizes resources, engages the global community, Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and AU Member States in the implementation of these programmes and projects.

Objectives

NEPAD's overall mission is to address the critical challenges of poverty, development and Africa’s marginalization internationally. Its four primary objectives are to:

• Eradicate poverty,
• Promote sustainable growth and development,
• Foster integration of Africa in the world economy, and
• Accelerate the empowerment of women.

NEPAD Agency

In 2010, the NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency (NEPAD Agency) replaced the NEPAD Secretariat which had coordinated the implementation of NEPAD programmes and projects since 2001. This came after the transformation and integration of the Agency into the structures of the African Union Commission (AUC) in 2010 by the Assembly of the Heads of State and Government of the AU.

The strategic direction of the NEPAD Agency is divided into six themes:

• Agriculture and food security
• Climate change and natural resource management
• Regional integration and infrastructure
• Human development
• Economic and corporate governance
• Cross-cutting issues – gender, ICT, capacity development and communications

Each of these thematic areas has been developed into full-fledged flagship programmes, including, among others:

• the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP),
• the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) ,
• the African Science Technology and Innovation Programme, and
• the NEPAD e-Schools Initiative .

The NEPAD and the UN

A high-level panel discussion was held at UN headquarters on 13 October 2014 on the theme, “The Africa We Want: Support of the United Nations system to the African Union’s Agenda 2063”. The event was co-organized by the Office of the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Africa (OSAA), the Office of the Permanent Observer of the African Union to the UN, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the UN Department of Public Information (DPI) and the African Peer Review Mechanism Secretariat (APRM). UN Photo/Kim Haughton

Following the final review and appraisal of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s, the General Assembly, by its resolution 57/7 , brought to a close the New Agenda, and endorsed the NEPAD as the framework for the provision of international support to Africa’s development.

In its resolution 57/300 , the General Assembly endorsed the creation of the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa (OSAA), with a mandate to coordinate the preparation of critical reports on Africa and undertake global advocacy in support of NEPAD, among others.

The importance of UN support to NEPAD was reaffirmed in the outcome document of the special event to follow up efforts made towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals, convened by the President of the 68th session of the General Assembly.

OSAA's Role

In accordance with its mandate, OSAA is the focal point on NEPAD in the United Nations. In this capacity, the Office plays a leading role in efforts for the enhancement of United Nations System and international support for Africa's development, peace and security, in particular for the implementation of NEPAD. Through its policy and analytical work and convening powers, the Office has:

• Worked to raise awareness of Africa’s special development challenges and progress in implementing its commitments, and
• Advocated for enhanced international support to complement national and regional efforts, and
• Forged partnerships with private sector and civil society organizations, including African Diaspora and academia, and leveraged their resources to advocate for Africa.

OSAA also participates in such important regional meetings as:

• The African Union Summit,
• the NEPAD Steering Committee meeting,
• NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee meeting,
• The Africa Peer Review Panel Forum,
• The joint African Union Commission/United Nations Economic Commision for Africa Annual Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development
• and other important, global meetings, to promote African priorities, engage important stakeholders, and advocate and mobilize increased support for Africa’s development.

In the fulfillment of its mandate, working closely with the NEPAD Agency, OSAA:

• Coordinates global advocacy in support of NEPAD;
• Acts as the focal point for NEPAD within the United Nations Secretariat at Headquarters;
• Coordinates and draft the annual reports of the Secretary-General on NEPAD, which capture support provided to NEPAD by the United Nations System and the international community, including the private sector and civil society:
  

  Note: the two links below point to the United Nations Bibliographic Information System (UNBISnet), a database from which documents can be sorted based on various criteria and accessed in all available languages.

  • Progress Reports on the Implementation of the New Partnership for Africa's Development, and
  • United Nations System Support for the New Partnership for Africa's Development

OSAA also convenes in New York, the Interdepartmental Task Force on African Affairs (IDTFA) to improve coherence and coordination of UN System support for the implementation of NEPAD and its sectoral priorities.

Within the auspices of the United Nations Monitoring Mechanism, OSAA monitors and reports on commitments made to Africa's peace, security and development, including NEPAD and its various flagship programmes and initiatives.

In addition, OSAA collaborates with the Department of Public Information and the Regional Coordination Mechanism (RCM) to conduct global advocacy in support of NEPAD.

Working with the “Africa investor” group, the Office has sought to raise the Continent’s profile as an investment destination through the organization of the annual Africa Investor Institutional Investment Summit in New York on the margins of the high-level segment of the General Assembly.