NIAMEY – Thursday, 24 November 2022 (APS) – The Minister of Foreign Affairs and National Community Abroad, Ramtane Lamamra presented Wednesday in Niamey the experience of Algeria in the field of industry, calling for the acceleration of the industrialization process of Africa in key sectors.
Speaking at a meeting of the Executive Council preparatory to the Extraordinary Summit of the African Union (AU) on Industrialization and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), scheduled for Friday, Lamamra highlighted the contributions of Algeria to the achievement of the objectives of Agenda 2063, including economic integration through structuring projects that will boost inter-African trade.
Recalling the pan-Africanist commitment of Algeria and its efforts to promote economic integration of the continent, the FM briefed his peers on the progress made by Algeria in economic development and diversification of non-hydrocarbon exports, highlighting the positive impact of the recovery program and economic renewal of the President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune.
Based on this national experience, Lamamra stressed the need to accelerate the process of industrialization of Africa,
According to him, the focus must be placed on key sectors for the future, such as energy supply, agribusiness, and pharmaceutical production, “areas in which Africa suffers from structural weaknesses that must be urgently corrected.”
In addition, speakers at the opening session, the Chairperson of the AU Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, the Chairperson of the Executive Council, Senegalese Minister Aissata Tall Sall, and the Foreign Minister of the host country, Hassoumi Massaoudou stressed the need to seize the opportunity of the Extraordinary Summit to take decisions that are commensurate with the challenges facing African countries in the current context of international relations, “marked by a succession of crises whose impact reflects the structural fragility of African economies.”
In this regard, the participants recommended the exploration of ways to provide the conditions necessary to boost the industrialization and economic diversification of Africa and make the AfCFTA more effective.