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Bring good intentions of NEPAD to
fruition - Kufuor
Accra, July 1, GNA - President John Agyekum Kufuor on Sunday
asked the continent's leaders to work to bring the good
intentions of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD),
the continent's development and economic blueprint, to bear
on the lives of ordinary citizens.
This, he said, could be done through conscious efforts to
integrate NEPAD principles and sectoral priorities into
national development planning and processes.
"The development of a mechanism that would trace and monitor
the degree to which each country has strived to implement
NEPAD at national level is urgent," President Kufuor said at
the opening of the 17th summit of the Heads of State and
Government Implementation Committee of NEPAD at the ongoing
Ninth AU summit in Accra.
The meeting is seeking to find innovative ways of
implementing and realizing the noble goals of NEPAD and to
build on the gains of decisions reached at Algiers, Algeria,
last March.
President Kufuor also called for the firming up of decisions
and a timeline as well as benchmarks for integrating NEPAD
into the structure and processes of the Africa Union.
He said given the grand debate on a continental union
government, which is the sole Agenda of the Ninth Ordinary
Session of the AU, the call for action on NEPAD was both
compelling and highly significant.
The President said since NEPAD's inception in 2001, the
continent had articulated its vision and aspirations for a
prosperous Africa to determine its priorities and how to
achieve peaceful continent.
Besides, the NEPAD vision enabled Africa to determine its
priorities and how to achieve them without let or hindrance
and also enhanced the ability of African nations to build
bridges to each other and form enduring and mutually
beneficial partnerships among themselves and with
partnerships among themselves and with partners from beyond.
"Therefore, working together within the framework of NEPAD,
we have an unprecedented opportunity to make progress on our
common goals of eradicating extreme poverty and achieving
prosperity in Africa," President Kufuor said.
GNA
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