Addis Ababa — The Executive Secretary of the ECA Ms. Vera Songwe received the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat as part of a longstanding commitment by both institutions to enhance collaboration and coordination in meeting Africa's development aspirations agreed to in the AU Vision, Agenda 2063 and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (Agenda 2030).

In their discussions, the AUC Chair and the Executive Secretary committed to working closely on a number of key areas of mutual collaboration. These include the AU institutional reform and support to the Joint UN-AU Framework on the implementation of Agenda 2063 and Agenda 2030, of which the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres and the AUC Chair, are expected to co-sign later this year.

Ms. Songwe underscored today's meeting as an important landmark that "sets the tone for working together." She said, as part of this collaboration, the two institutions are working closely to ensure that the Continental Free Trade Area is successfully concluded on time to reinforce the regional integration agenda.

For his part, Mr. Mahamat welcomed the strong collaboration with ECA, saying it played an important role in jointly addressing many of Africa's challenges as outlined in Agenda 2063 and Agenda 2030. He acknowledged the close working relationship and assured Ms. Songwe of availability of his office to collaborate, in line with the objectives of both institutions.

The Chairperson was introduced to ECA'S Senior Leadership Team, and both leaders agreed to hold a working session with their respective teams to discuss issues of common interest and accelerate implementation of the Continental agenda.

The meeting is the first time an AUC chair has visited the ECA, marking it as an key step in the growing relationship between the two institutions.