Opening of the 36th Ordinary Session of The Assembly of the African Union

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February 18, 2023

MEDIA ADVISORY / 36TH AU SUMMIT

INVITATION TO REPRESENTATIVES OF THE MEDIA

What: Official opening ceremony of the Thirty-Sixth (36th) Ordinary Session of the Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU).

When: 18th February 2023. 10AM EAT

Highlights for the media include:

Statements by:

 H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the AU Commission
 H.E. Dr. Abiy Ahmed, Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
 Secretary General of the League of Arab States
 H.E. Antonio Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations
 H.E President of the State of Palestine
 H.E. Macky Sall, Chairperson of the African Union and President of the Republic of Senegal
The opening session will also include:
 The Announcement of the Bureau of the Assembly of the African Union for the year 2023 and the Chairperson of the African Union for the year 2024
 Handing over statement by the Outgoing AU Chairperson H.E. Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal
 Acceptance statement by H.E. Incoming AU Chairperson
 The launch of the African Union theme of the year 2023

There will be a group photo for the Heads of State and Government, together with Members of the Commission after which the Heads of States will proceed to the Closed Session.

Where: African Union Headquarters, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The opening and closing sessions will also be broadcast live on

18th February 2023, 10 am EAT- Opening Session of the Assembly - https://livestream.com/africanunion/events/10769789

19th February 2023 – Closing Session of the Assembly- https://livestream.com/africanunion/events/10769833

Who: The 36th Ordinary Session of the Heads of State and Government of the AU is organized by the African Union Commission (AUC).

The opening ceremony of the AU Summit will take place in the presence of the leadership and officials of the AU Commission, Ministers and Ambassadors from the AU Member States, officials of AU organs and offices and partners.

Background information:

Convened on the 18th and 19th February 2023, the Heads of State and Government, meeting at their 36th Ordinary Session, will consider among others, the draft agenda, draft decisions and declarations of the Assembly for adoption, submitted by the 42nd Ordinary Session of the Executive Council held prior to the summit on 15 and 16 February 2023.

The summit will also examine strategic status report of their session such as the Report on the Institutional Reforms of the AU to be presented by H.E Paul Kagame, President of the Republic of Rwanda, the Report on the activities of the Peace and Security Council (PSC) and the state of peace and security in Africa, the Report on global political, financial and energy policy governance, to be presented by H.E Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal and the Report on global food crisis.

Reports of Heads of State and Government committees of the Assembly notably, the Reports of the forum of Heads of State and Government participating in the African Peer Review Mechanism APRM forum) by H.E. Julius Maada Bio, President of the Republic of Sierra Leone and Chairperson of the African peer review mechanism (APRM) , the Report of the AUDA-NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee , and the Report of the AU Committee of Ten (C-10) Heads of State and Government on the Reform of the UN Security Council, will also be considered during the summit.

Reports of the Leaders on specific thematic issues such as the Annual Report of the AUC Chairperson including the Champions reports, the report on the African Union response on Covid-19 pandemic in Africa, by H.E Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa, President of the Republic of South Africa and AU Champion for the Covid-19 pandemic response, Report on the evaluation of the First-Ten Year Implementation Plan (STYIP) by H.E Alassane Ouattara, President of the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire and the report on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) by H.E Mahamadou Issoufou, former President of the Republic of Niger and leader on AfCFTA, including the report of the Committee of the African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC), will also be discussed during the summit, before concluding on the adoption of the date and venue of the 37th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union and the date and venue of the 5th Mid-Year Coordination meeting.

Among the high moment during the summit will be the appointment of the Director General of Africa CDC and the appointment of One (1) Member of the AU Board of External Auditors, for the Two-Year Term, 2022 and 2023

Journalists are invited to cover the opening and closing ceremonies of the 36th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the AU on Saturday, 18th and Sunday 19th February 2023.

For more details, visit https://au.int/en/summit/36

For media inquiries, please contact:

Mrs. Esther Azaa Tankou| Head of Media and Information Division |African Union Commission| email: yamboue@africa-union.org

Mrs Wynne Musabayana| Head of Communication | African Union Commission | email: MusabayanaW@africa-union.org

Mr. Molalet Tsedeke | Directorate of Information and Communication; African Union Commission | E-mail: molalett@africa-union.org | Tel: +251 11 518 2014/ +251 11 5182518 | Mobile: +132022159152

Information and Communication Directorate, African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@africa-union.org

AUC