A new Memorandum of Cooperation between the United States and the African Union Commission, signed by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and AU Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat on March 11 will elevate the partnership between the United Sates and countries and institutions throughout Africa, said Secretary of State Antony Blinken. “In November, I laid out five areas where our countries’ and peoples’ interests align very powerfully: democracy, peace and security, inclusive economic growth, the climate crisis, and global health security.
And we are working closely with the African Union on each and every one of these issues.”
“As there continue to be challenges to democracy throughout the continent, the AU has responded with strong action, both through efforts to restore democracy in Mali, in Burkina Faso, in Guinea, and through its decision to suspend the membership of countries where democratic governments have been overthrown.”
“Challenges in peace to security often stem from … a lack of economic opportunity,” said Secretary Blinken.
“We’re partnering with the AU, African governments and businesses, entrepreneurs, civil society, our own private sector, and international financial institutions to try to make investments that will spark greater growth and opportunity, like access to reliable infrastructure and electricity.”
On the climate crisis, we are coordinating our programs to support the AU’s Continental Climate Change Strategy, to find new ways to help countries across Africa adapt to and manage the impacts of climate change, said Secretary Blinken.
“Finally, we’re working together to combat the pandemic,” he said. “The AU is … a vital player in the international community’s efforts to end the pandemic through the COVID-19 Global Action Plan.”
“We’re grateful for the AU’s partnership, especially for coordinating vaccine donations and managing the continent’s COVID response, which the United States has been proud to support with, to date, 166 million vaccines to countries in Africa, guided by the AU’s Joint Continental Strategy for COVID-19.”
The new Memorandum of Cooperation will “expand the public health workforce, establish new institutes for research and development, make it easier for the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. government to work together to stop the next pandemic before it starts,” said Secretary Blinken.
“That’s how we’ll make progress: as equal partners, working together to deliver concrete results, measurable benefits to our people, on the issues that actually matter the most to them.”
