ADEA WGCOMED News Journal N°7, March - May 2014

Dear Colleagues and partners,

We are pleased to share with you the seventh edition of our News Journal. The theme for this edition is “Communicating for the post 2015 Development Agenda”. As 2016 is fast approaching, there is now considerable debate led by the UN and other bodies as well as civil society organizations in Africa and around the world regarding the next steps to implement the next phases for the targets and sustainable development goals that are being talked about now. We want to participate and contribute meaningfully in this on-going debate, and articulate the importance of communication with various types of media to articulate a strong collective position that would be representative of Africa’s predicament in a fast changing world.

We carry two interviews in this edition, one from the Commissioner for human resources, science and technology of the African Union Commission, the Honorable Dr. Martial De Paul Ikounga, and another from Leger Djiba, a young entrepreneur from Senegal who has so well-articulated some of the voices we do not usually hear in these kinds of ventures. We have also reviewed a paper on attaining the 2050 Vision for Africa, written by Birger Fredriksen and Ruth Kagia, two former officials of the World Bank. This paper is part of a major long-term study for Africa covering all sectors, and was presented to African leaders at a major conference in Abidjan in June, 2013. Oxford University Press has this year published this study in a book entitled : “Africa 2015 : Realizing the Continent’s full Potentials “.

We also have the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, who provides us with her innate vision of Africa’s agenda for the year 2063, as she sees Africa as the continent of the future. Various points of views and analysis regarding the post 2015 development agenda especially in relation to Africa are also depicted in this edition. Major development agencies that include the United Nations and the African Development Bank also give us their positions vis-à-vis post 2015. We end up with news and briefings from ADEA and from around Africa.

Enjoy your reading !