I want to begin by thanking you, Excellencies Heads of State and Government, for the strong support that you have provided throughout the institutional reform process. We have indeed come a long way since January 2017. A clear consensus has been forged around the need for an effective and self-sustaining African Union.

With respect to financing, the budget process is more transparent and the burden is more evenly shared among Member States. More than 150 million dollars have been contributed to the Peace Fund over the last three years and the Board of Trustees is now in place.

On the implementation of the 0.2 per cent levy, we have reached a collective understanding. I encourage the Commission to work closely with Member States to increase the number of countries implementing the levy.

However, I note with concern that the new sanctions regime for non-payment has still not been implemented. The new sanctions regime was adopted in January 2018 and should have been operational by July 2019. But it has not been implemented.

Excellencies, if we do not give serious attention to this matter, many of our achievements and future plans will be jeopardised.

There has been progress in reforming the structure of the Commission to make it leaner and more efficient. The new structure has been endorsed by the Executive Council and it has been put before us for adoption.

The Panel of Eminent Persons for the selection of the senior leadership of the Commission is now in place. As the reformed selection process unfolds this year, we look forward to electing Africa’s best talent to lead the African Union Commission in the next term. The success of this selection process will mark a key milestone in the implementation of the institutional reform as a whole.

The first Mid-Year Coordination Meeting was successfully held in July 2019 in Niger. During this Summit, we will adopt the Protocol of Relations between the African Union and the Regional Economic Communities, among other important instruments. This is an important step toward defining an effective division of labour between the African Union and the regional pillars.

On the reform of the Pan-African Parliament and the judicial organs, I encourage the Commission and the Member States to complete the consultations necessary to adopt detailed reform proposals at the next Summit.

Excellencies, once again, I thank you for your trust and partnership on this journey, which is of the highest importance for our organisation. I thank you very much.