2008 – THE GOLDEN JUBILEE YEAR FOR THE UNITED NATIONS ECONOMIC COMMISSION FOR AFRICA (UNECA)ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA

SEBLE DEMEKE, CORRESPONDENT OF THE UN SPECIAL IN AFRICA

The mandate of ECA, when the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) established it in 1958, was “to promote the economic and social development of its member States, foster – intra-regional integration and promote international cooperation for Africa’s development”. As a regional organization, the Commission covers the entire continent and is, in a real sense, the United Nations in Africa.

ECA’s objectives have evolved with time in helping its Member States in their efforts to make the region economically self-reliant. As an institution, it has also needed to equip itself to meet the different challenges faced from the turbulent period of struggle for independence to globalization while ultimately seeking the eradication of poverty. The 50-odd years of the Commission’s journey therefore, comprise those historical moments of African nations gaining independence from colonization and leading the continent to freedom. In this respect, ECA has worked hand-in-hand with the then Organization of African Unity (OAU), established in 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. After the Arab onslaughts followed Europe’s “scramble for Africa” which saw (excepting for Ethiopia and Liberia), the colonization of the entire continent. In the long and bloody struggle for independence, many were the sacrifices and deep was the suffering. History records that the United Nations has always been on the side of the people of Africa and has played a very significant role by assisting their liberation movements in their quest for independence. The light of freedom started shining on the continent during the late 1950s and by the 1960s most African countries had become independent. The struggle ended in 1994 when South Africa dismantled its odious regime of apartheid. Africa has now fifty-three free States with about seven hundred million inhabitants, which makes it the second most populous continent in the world after Asia. Concomitantly, the tasks and responsibilities of the Commission have increased significantly.

Over the last 50 years, the political evolution of the continent has been guided not only towards economic self-reliance, but also towards democratic governance, respect for human rights and the strengthening of national, sub-regional and regional institutions. Building the capacity of Member States has been an uphill task to surmount such obstacles as political instability, ethnic conflicts, unfavorable international trade practices, servicing of foreign debt and climate change, to name but a few. Recently, the most serious challenge emerging has been the HIV/AIDS pandemic which, because it affects mostly people during their productive and reproductive years, has devastated the entire economy of the continent. In a long-term perspective study entitled ECA and Africa’s Development 1978–2008, projections were made comparing normative trend scenarios (if Africa wanted a “willed future”) to what the historical trends would lead to by 2008. This Golden Jubilee year 2008 is, therefore, a time for ECA to reflect on its achievements, failures and future challenges.

ECA started its partnership for development with the African continent through what was known as “technical cooperation” meaning providing experts, training and capital for development activities. Subregionally, this pattern of cooperation was further reinforced by United Nations Development Advisory Teams (UNDATs) along with bilateral cooperation between the former colonies and their colonizers. Financial institutions like the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the regional banks, contributed to the efforts made by the Commission in the area of institution building by supporting and strengthening ECA’s Multinational Programming and Operational Centers (MULPOCs as the current Sub-regional Offices were then called) and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs). ECA has five SROs : for Central, East, North, South and West Africa, which are the implementing arms of the Commission in all spheres of technical assistance. The eight RECs, on the other hand, work very closely with the SROs in the area of capacity building and regional integration and will now provide ministerial-level guidance for the subregional thrust of the Commission’s work. These include the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) ; The Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) ; the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) ; the East African Community (EAC) ; the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) ; the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) ; the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA). The Regional Economic Communities “are intergovernmental organizations set up by groups of countries to foster stronger economic ties and cooperation eventually leading to the creation of one “African Economic Community”, through establishing free trade areas, customs unions and common markets.

ECA in the last 50 years has been served by seven Executive Secretaries. The first was Mr. Mekki Abbas from Sudan, 1951–1961, followed by Mr. Robert Gardiner from Ghana, 1961–1975 ; Mr. Adebayo Adedeji, Nigeria, 1975–1991 ; Mr. Issa Diallo, Guinea, 1991–1992 ; Mr. Layashi Yaker, Algeria, 1992 –1995 ; Mr. Kingsley Amoako, Ghana 1995–2005 and the current Executive Secretary, Mr. Abdoule Janneh from the Gambia, was appointed in 2005. Each of these Executive Secretaries deserves credit for their significant contributions in strengthening the Commission and making it relevant to the needs of the people of Africa. For example, Professor Adedeji, is remembered by many Africans, in particular by former and current ECA staff, for two specific actions : his message to African Governments “you must first set your house in order before you can begin to think of a bigger house to build”. He is also one of the initiators of the regional integration concept, which was later followed by the sixth Executive Secretary, Professor K.Y. Amoako. Professor Adedeji is also responsible for the establishment of several sub-regional economic cooperation organizations such as ECOWAS and the Preferential Trade Area for Eastern and Southern African States (PTA), which is the current COMESA. The introduction of several other policies in the area of equipping the Commission with African experts (known as Africanization) in many areas including translation, interpretation, editing and publication are also his efforts. Professor K.Y. Amoako was the reformist aiming for excellence in the delivery of services. His main focus was enhancing African regional economic integration and increasing the continent’s participation in global trade. Mr. Abdoule Janneh’s priorities, among others, are strengthening partnership building for Africa. For that aim to be realized, he works closely with donors, the private sector, civil society as well as national, regional and international organizations.

During the life of ECA, several institutions have been created to respond to the needs of the people of Africa. The African Development Bank and IDEP are cases in point. More directly related to the Commission’s mandate came successive regional arrangements like APPER, UNPAAERD, UNSIA and the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s (UN-NADAF) a commitment made by African countries and the international community to reach a certain percentage of economic growth in order to reduce poverty in Africa. The most recent successor arrangement is the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), which is a programme of the African Union (AU) set by Heads of State and Government to tackle the challenges facing the continent. In all these initiatives and many others, the contribution of ECA in resource mobilization, ideas and expertise needs to be recognized.

Further more, one of the many important contributions that ECA has made to the continent is through its newly built United Nations Conference Center (UNCC) which is in charge of coordinating, planning and servicing of all conferences and meetings held at the UNCC and off-site. Its mandate is to provide meetings services not only for the Management and Substantive Divisions of ECA but also for UN Agencies, the African Union Commission, accredited Embassies, Ethiopian Government institutions, international NGOs, selected professional associations and reputable corporations. Just recently the conference of Heads of States of Africa, held from 31 January to the 2nd of February 2008 was held at the UNCC. At this conference the Chairman of the OAU and several High Commissioners were elected. Just to show that Conferences are one of the efficient ways of giving Africa the visibility it deserves. This consistent improvement of efficiently servicing the UN Conferences in Africa by UNECA should also be appreciated and encouraged to continue its dynamism.

Despite ECA’s significant contributions, however, through its own programmes of assisting its member States and by coordinating the activities of other United Nations system organizations at the regional level, there are still huge challenges to be met. The current economic and social situation of the continent leaves much to be desired. Economic performance in the region, going by recent reports, kept on losing ground in the 1990s, which resulted in the increase of the population living under conditions of absolute poverty. The population living below $1 a day is higher today than in the 1980s and 1990s. This indicates that the majority of people in Africa have no jobs or stable source of income. Furthermore, the political instability caused in particular by civil wars, has inflicted considerable damage on national economies, leading to population displacement, mostly from the rural areas. The genocidal war in Rwanda left a bad stain on the continent, as did other political tensions, which impacted negatively on the development process. Unfavorable weather conditions are also creating food shortages in some countries.

To conclude, the root causes of Africa’s development problems can only be addressed through the policy commitment of ECA’s African member States and their development partners. As a regional commission, ECA can only operate within the development framework set up by its member States and initiate management reforms that will keep it relevant to their needs and challenges.