COMMUNIQUÉ OF THE STEERING COMMITTEE ON THE PROTOCOL TO THE TREATY ESTABLISHING THE AFRICAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY (AEC) RELATING TO THE PAN AFRICAN PARLIAMENT - ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA - 28 APRIL 2003:

1. At the initiative of the Commission of the African Union, the Steering Committee (Botswana, Cameroon, Gabon, Libya, Mali, Rwanda, SADR, South Africa, Tanzania and Togo) on the Protocol to the Treaty establishing the AEC relating to the Pan African Parliament, met at the AU Headquarters, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 28 April 2003.

2. This Committee was established in conformity with the decision of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government which met in Durban, South Africa in July 2002, upon the proposal of the Consultative Meeting of the African Parliaments which was held in June 2002, in Cape Town, South Africa.

3. The Meeting unanimously elected Dr. Frene Ginwala, Speaker of the South African Parliament, as Chairperson of the Steering Committee.

4. The Committee agreed to work closely with National and Regional Parliaments and other deliberative organs in Member States, in particular, to coordinate its actions and initiatives with the African Parliamentary Union and other parliamentary bodies towards the acceleration of the process of ratification and operationalization of the Protocol to the Treaty establishing the AEC relating to the Pan African Parliament.

5. The Committee was briefed by Amb. Said Djinnit, Interim Commissioner for Peace, Security and Political Affairs of the Commission, on behalf of the Interim Chairperson of the Commission, on the priorities and activities of the Union during the interim period, in particular, the progress made in establishing the key organs of the Union, and the political and socio-economic situation on the Continent.

6. Following an exhaustive exchange of views on the ways and means of accelerating the ratification and operationalization of the Protocol to the Treaty establishing the AEC relating to the Pan African Parliament, the Committee agreed as follows:
* Appealed to all Member States that had not signed and/or ratified the Protocol to do so as soon as possible;
* The need for the Commission to request Member States to provide information on their constitutional processes and procedures for the ratification of treaties and the current stage of ratification of the Protocol relating to the Pan African Parliament;
* The Permanent Representatives to the AU should be requested to inform the Commission on a regular basis, on the progress made in the ratification of the Protocol;
* The members of the Steering Committee should work closely with existing regional Parliamentary structures, in particular, the Parliamentary Fora of SADC, CEMAC, UEMOA, ECOWAS, EAP, UMA and IGAD.
* The Commission should send the text of all AU Treaties to National Parliaments for information and appropriate action.

7. The Committee exchanged views on the vision of the Pan African parliament.

8. The Committee requested the Commission to bring to the attention of the 3rd Extra Ordinary Session of the Executive Council scheduled for Sun City, South Africa in May 2003, the outcome of this meeting and to urge all Member States to expedite the signing and/or ratification of the Protocol.

9. The Committee agreed to hold its second meeting before the Maputo Summit to assess the progress made and to prepare its report to be submitted to the Summit in July 2003.

10. At the end of its deliberations, the Steering Committee expressed its appreciation to the Commission for the initiative taken in convening the meeting. The Committee commended the Interim Chairperson of the Commission and all his collaborators for the actions undertaken during the interim period.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
28 April 2003

Referred to the Working Group of the African Union.