Innovate to silence the guns, says Pacheco

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Innovate to silence the guns, says Pacheco

10:19 CAT | 29 May 2019

Photo: Twitter / @TorvinenLaura

It is urgent to implement innovative measures and mechanisms to silence the guns in Africa by 2020, declared Mozambican Foreign Minister Jose Pacheco on Saturday.

Speaking at a ceremony in Maputo to mark Africa Day, the anniversary of the foundation in 1963 of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), the precursor of today’s African Union, Pacheco recalled that, in Addis Ababa in 2013, during the celebrations of the 50th anniversary, African leaders had pledged to end all wars and other violent conflicts by 2020.

He called for resort to such methods as structural prevention, preventive diplomacy and the mediation of conflicts and disputes.

“Despite all the efforts to silence the guns, some conflicts persist and new crises have arisen”, sad Pacheco. “There is a continual proliferation of threats to peace and security in Africa, particularly terrorism and violent extremism”.

He added that progress made in silencing the guns will contribute considerably to a lasting solution to the question of refugees, and internally displaced people on the continent, with a positive impact for the development of Africa.

Indeed, the African Union proclaimed 2019 as the “Year of Refugees, Returnees and Internally Displaced Persons: Towards Durable Solutions to Forced Displacement in Africa”.

According to Egyptian ambassador Hatim Elalfy, whose country currently holds the rotating presidency of the African Union, the question of guaranteeing peace and stability greatly concerns the continent, because on it will depend achieving the ambitious targets laid down in Agenda 2063, which envisages a developed and prosperous continent, free of any kind of threat.

“These ambitious targets cannot be achieved without guaranteeing peace and stability on our continent, which is still suffering from multiple conflicts”, he said. “In this context, strengthening the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) has become a reality, with particular stress on reviving the AU’s policy on Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Development to safeguard African countries in conflict”.

The Egyptian presidency of the AU claims to be giving greater primacy to regional integration, mainly through promoting the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, which will supposedly boost intra-African trade, thus contributing to job creation and poverty reduction.

Source: AIM