President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will travel to Nairobi, Kenya, on Saturday, July 15, to attend the Fifth Mid-Year Coordination Meeting (5th MYCM) of the African Union (AU), the Regional Economic Communities (RECs), the Regional Mechanisms (RMs), and the African Union Member States.
Tinubu, as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) chairman, will join heads of state and government, foreign ministers of the AU member states, and high-level dignitaries at the mid-year meeting.
The president’s spokesperson, Dele Alake, disclosed in a statement on Friday that the meeting will take place on Sunday, July 16.
Alake said President Tinubu will present a comprehensive report on the progress of regional integration within ECOWAS during the gathering.
He added that the report will outline the actions taken by ECOWAS institutions, member states, the private sector, and other stakeholders to improve integration through various initiatives such as trade facilitation, free movement of people, investment promotion, infrastructure development, and the promotion of peace, security, and stability.
President Tinubu, who will be accompanied by senior government officials, is expected to return to the country at the conclusion of the meeting, according to Alake.
The 5th MYCM is set to convene under the AU’s theme for 2023, “Acceleration of African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Implementation.”
The meeting will bring together the Bureau of the AU Assembly, including the Heads of State and Government from Comoros, Botswana, Burundi, and Senegal, as well as the leaders of the eight RECs.
These regional economic communities encompass ECOWAS, chaired by Nigeria, along with the East African Community (EAC), the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Community of Sahel–Saharan States (CEN SAD), the Arab Maghreb Union (UMA), and the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS).
The meeting will also include representatives from the African Union Commission and the RMs.
President Tinubu, who will be accompanied by senior government officials, is expected to return to the country at the conclusion of the meeting.
THEGUARDIAN
