Africa Day: Joint Efforts against Present-Day Challenges
All over the world and on the African continent, 25 May is celebrated as
Africa Day. It is exactly 57 years ago in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) that the
Organisation of African Unity was founded, whose role today is played by the
African Union that joins together 55 countries. The day is also known as the
African Freedom Day and proclaims the political and economic integration of the
countries of the region, as well as complete eradication of colonialism and
neo-colonialism on the African continent.
Bear in mind that the first Russia–Africa Summit and Economic
Forum took place in Sochi in October 2019 under the slogan ‘For Peace, Safety
and Development’. Based on the results of that event, priority areas of
economic cooperation were determined and official delegations and business
representatives from the countries of Africa expressed high level of interest
in development of cooperation with Russia, its extension and intensification.
“Mutually
beneficial cooperation between Russia and Africa has a long history, and these
days, important strategic significance for the economy of our countries as
well. We are glad of the new opportunities of partnership with Africa and we
are ready to put into practice the potential stored over the decades. The
regularly held Russia–Africa Summits and Forums will become one of the tools
for intensive strengthening of the dialogue between the countries,” noted Anton
Kobyakov, Advisor to the President of the Russian Federation.
The key result of the event was adoption of the final declaration that includes the agreed-upon goals and objectives of further development of the Russian-African
cooperation in all areas: political, security, economic, scientific and
technological, and cultural and humanitarian. The declaration also secures the new
dialogue mechanism – the Russia–Africa Partnership Forum, whose Secretariat
will deal with preparing and holding the second high-level Russia–Africa
meeting in 2022.
Results of the in-house investigation on the impact of the pandemic on the African continent ‘African Socio-political Context in the Midst of the
Pandemic: Further Stabilisation or a Powder Keg Effect?’ will soon be published via online resources of the Roscongress Foundation.
