04 Aug 2016

Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Dr Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi is still keen for the African Union Commission (AUC) chairperson candidacy.

This follows the postponement of elections to appoint the new chairperson in Kigal, Rwanda since the candidates were not able to achieve the required two thirds majority, where Dr Venson-Moitoi was one of the entrants.

The elections will take place at the 28th AU Summit scheduled for January 2017 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Addressing members of the media, Dr Venson-Moitoi said she had already indicated that she was available and would re-enter the race.

She said President, Lt Gen. Dr Seretse Khama Ian Khama had already informed other heads of states about her intention.

As part of the steps to be taken before the decision is taken to re-enter the race, Dr Venson-Moitoi will on Thursday travel to Mozambique to meet with other foreign affairs ministers from the SADC region to discuss the issue in preparation for the SADC Summit that will be held in Swaziland at the end of the month.

It is at the SADC Summit where countries will seek to renew the mandate for endorsement.

Still on the issue of AUC chairperson contention, Dr Venson-Moitoi made it clear to the media that speculations that she was funded by the Americans were not true. She also said she will not be surprised if there will be other candidates for the Addis Ababa elections as countries are said to have already shown interest.

However, the confident minister said this time she is stronger than before, noting that she has never been the one to shy away from a contest.

Meanwhile, Dr Venson-Moitoi shared some of the key outcomes of the 27th Assembly of the African Union, such as the financing of AU, where heads of states and governments reaffirmed the need to ensure that the AU is financed in a predictable, sustainable, equitable and accountable manner with the full ownership of its member states.

The assembly also decided to, amongst others, institute and implement a 0.2 per cent levy on all eligible imported goods to the continent to finance the AU operating, programme and peace and security operations budget from 2017.

The levy is expected to raise US$325 million in 2017 which will go towards supporting peace missions and other operational activities related to peace and security.

Launch of the electronic passport was another the key outcomes in Kigali, a flagship project of Africa’s Agenda 2063 aimed at facilitating free movement of persons, goods and services. ENDS