By Haruna Gimba
The candidate for the office of African Union Commission chairperson, Ambassador Dr. Amina Mohamed, said she is confident that her track record stands her in good stead to take on the role as head of the Africa’s apex body.
In an interview published in New African and African Business Magazines, Dr. Amina Mohamed, set out her case in her candidacy for the position of African Union Chairperson that will be decided at the forthcoming AU Summit at the end of January 2017.
“I am a tough, but fair, negotiator and what I enjoy doing most is building consensus, unifying people and sticking on message to obtain optimum outcomes,” she said.
Ambassador Amina, Kenya’s Minister of Foreign Affairs’ experience as a chief negotiator at the highest level, be it at the WTO, at the UN Environment Programme or at GATT (the General Agreements on Tarrifs and Trade) have shown she can get different vested interest to find a mutually beneficial position, bringing about consensus for the benefit of the majority.
Dr. Amina Mohamed
She sees herself as a passionate Africa and pan-Africanist always fighting Africa’s corner at international fora, in some cases as a lone voice for the developing world. As well as building consensus, which is the first step in any discussion.
She said that her strength comes from actually getting things done.
“We need to implement, rather than simply make declarations. Implementation has been woeful, my mantra will be implementation, implementation, and implementation.
She added that her strategic focus will be on doing better with existing resources. In order for AU reforms to work.
She said: “You must bring everybody along. That is why experience in reaching consensus is vital to this job”.
In building equal partnerships for the delivery of Agenda 2063, Africa’s ambitious roadmap for sustainable socioeconomic development, Ambassador Amina said that a different conversation is needed in order to confront some of the most complex global challenges facing Africa.
Ambassador Amina Mohamed has received the endorsement from a number of private sector leaders including; CEO of Equity Bank, James Mwangi and CEO & Senior Partner at KPMG in Kenya, Josphat Mwaura.
The other candidates for Chairperson of the African Union Commission are: Botswana’s Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi, Chad’s Moussa Faki Mahamat, Equatorial Guinea’s Agapito Mba Mokuy, and Senegal’s Abdoulaye Bathily.
