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Al-Sisi called for maximising efforts for strong, prosperous Africa at final AU session AU chairperson necessitates creating conditions for return of immigrants
Egypt's President and the African Union's (AU) Chairperson, Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, asserted on Tuesday his keenness to cooperate with all the AU commissioners in order to achieve the union's targets. This came during Al-Sisi's meeting with the African Union Commission's (AUC) Chairperson, Moussa Faki, during the 32nd AU Summit in Addis Ababa. The AU chairperson stressed the significance of enhancing the joint work in order to implement the AU Agenda 2063, and maximise the mutual trade between the African countries through a free continent trade zone. Moreover, Al-Sisi seeks to enhance security and peace in the continent, and rebuild the countries which are affected by conflicts. The AU Agenda 2063 is “a strategic framework for the socio-economic transformation of the continent over the next 50 years." It seeks to accelerate the implementation of the past and existing continental initiatives for growth and sustainable development. Regarding the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA), it was adopted during the 18th AU Summit in 2012 which aimed to "bring together African countries, and a combined gross domestic product of more than the US' $3.4tn," according to the AU's official website. Late on Monday, Al-Sisi delivered his concluding speech at the summit. He said during the summit's discussions that African countries agreed on moving forward in order to implement developmental projects and the CFTA, as well as create conditions for the return of refugees to their homes. Al-Sisi added the AU seeks to achieve sustainable development, offer more jobs for African youth, and pave the way for a new strong and prosperous continent. Furthermore, the Egyptian President emphasised the need to bolster the cooperation with international organisations, with regional and economic bodies, as well as funding institutions. He also called for concentrating the efforts to achieve the targets of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the AU Agenda 2063. The 32nd AU Summit kicked off on Sunday in Addis Ababa with the participation of 55 African countries. It focuses on institutional reforms and the establishment of a continental free trade zone in Africa. This year's theme is: ‘Year of Refugees, Returnees and Internally Displaced Persons: Towards Durable Solutions to Forced Displacement in Africa.'
