adminHeather Charema Herald Reporter
Zimbabwe’s civil society groups have been urged to take part in policy discourses that link people’s ideas with the African Union’s policy-making bodies. African Union Commission chairperson’s special advisor Ambassador Lazarous Kapambwe made the call ahead of the Economic, Social and Cultural Council of the African Union General Assembly to be held in November this year.
Addressing civil society groups which attended the ECOSOCC sensitisation and motivation campaign in Harare last week, Ambassador Kapambwe said Zimbabwe had not been participating in the previous assemblies of the body.
“Zimbabwean civil society should be available for the ECOSOCC assembly to be held in November this year so that they participate in the implementation of policies in the African Union,” he said.
“Zimbabwe has not been well represented in the previous assemblies.”
The civil society, Ambassador Kapambwe said, had to connect the Zimbabwean populace with continental agendas and policy discourses, saying ECOSOCC was the only forum that linked the voices of ordinary citizens to the policy making bodies at the AU.
ECOSOCC is an advisory organ which, through advise, contributes to the effective translation of the objectives, principles and policies of the African Union into concrete programmes and the evaluation of the programmes.
It was mandated to establish National Co-ordination Mechanisms in each of the 53 member states for purposes of popularising its work.
Online Reporter