Luanda - The ministerial meeting of the African Union (AU) approved Angola's proposal to amend paragraph 4 of Article 22 of the organization's Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption, which aims to strengthen the effectiveness of its Advisory Council for this purpose, by extending the mandate of its members.
According to a press release that ANGOP had access to on Wednesday, the approval of the amendment to the Convention was made at the end of the ninth ordinary session of the ministerial meeting of the Specialised Technical Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs of the African Union (AU).
The document states that the proposal will be submitted to the Executive Council of the continental organization, which precedes the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, to be held from February 14 to 18, 2024, in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia).
The session also recommended to the Executive Council the adoption of a decision requesting the African Union Commission (AUC) to continue advocating for the ratification of the Protocol on the Statute of the African Court of Justice and Human Rights (Sharm El Sheikh Protocol – 2008) and the Malabo Protocol – 2014, with a view to ensuring the threshold of ratifications necessary for their entry into force.
On the sidelines of this meeting, the 8th special session of the ministerial meeting of the AU Specialized Technical Committees on Justice and Legal Affairs was held, which considered the Draft Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on Specific Aspects of the Right to Nationality and the Eradication of Statelessness in Africa.
In both events, the Angolan delegation was led by the Ambassador to Ethiopia and Permanent Representative to the African Union (AU) and UNECA, Miguel César Domingos Bembe.
The African Union Anti-Corruption Advisory Council (AUABC) was represented by its Vice-President, Angolan Pascoal António Joaquim. FMA/SC/DOJ