NEPAD is a merger of two plans for the economic regeneration of Africa: the Millennium Partnership for the African Recovery Programme (MAP), led by the Former President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa in conjunction with Former President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria and President Abdelaziz Bouteflika of Algeria; and the OMEGA Plan for Africa developed by President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal. At an extraordinary summit in Sirte, Libya, March 2001, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) agreed that the MAP and OMEGA Plans should be merged. The UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) developed a "Compact for Africa’s Recovery" based on both these plans and on resolutions on Africa adopted by the United Nations Millennium Summit in September 2000, and submitted a merged document to the Conference of African Ministers of Finance and Ministers of Development and Planning in Algiers, May 2001.
NEPAD’s four primary objectives are:
- To eradicate poverty,
- Promote sustainable growth and development,
- Integrate Africa in the world economy, and
- Accelerate the empowerment of women.
In July 2002, the Durban AU summit supplemented NEPAD with a Declaration on Democracy, Political, Economic and Corporate Governance. According to the Declaration, states participating in NEPAD ‘believe in just, honest, transparent, accountable and participatory government and probity in public life’.
The APRM Process
The Declaration on Democracy, Political, Economic and Corporate Governance also committed participating states to establish an African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) to promote adherence to and fulfillment of its commitments. The Durban summit adopted a document setting out the stages of Peer Review and the principles by which the APRM should operate; further core documents were adopted at a meeting in Abuja in March 2003, including a Memorandum of Understanding to be signed by governments wishing to undertake the peer review.
Accordingly, they ‘undertake to work with renewed determination to enforce’, among other things, the rule of law; the equality of all citizens before the law; individual and collective freedoms; the right to participate in free, credible and democratic political processes; and adherence to the separation of powers, including protection for the independence of the judiciary and the effectiveness of parliaments.
The African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) is a mutually agreed instrument voluntarily acceded to by the member states of the African Union (AU) as a self-monitoring mechanism. The mandate of the APRM is to encourage conformity in regard to political, economic and corporate governance values, codes and standards, among African countries
This is the Committee of the Heads of State and Government of the countries voluntarily participating in the APRM. It is the highest decision-making body and could be considered like the board of directors which has the final say over the whole process. APR Panel
The panel consists of 7 eminent persons of ‘high moral stature and demonstrated commitment to the ideals of Pan Africanism’ who, moreover, have ‘expertise in the areas of political governance, macro-economic management, public financial management and corporate governance’. Its composition should also reflect a regional, gender and cultural balance.APR Secretariat
The Secretariat provides ‘the secretarial, technical, coordinating and administrative support services for the APRM’. It is ‘supervised directly by the Chairperson of the APR Panel at the policy level.APR
Country Review Team
They are appointed by the APR Panel, one of whose members heads the team, and are ‘constituted only for the period of the country review visit’. Their composition is ‘carefully designed to enable an integrated, balanced, technically competent and professional assessment of the reviewed country’APR
focal point
This is a national mechanism set up by a participating country in order to play a communication and co-ordination role. National co-coordinating structure
Here the actual implementation of the APRM at the national level happens. The country’s self-assessment happens here by conducting, as the MOU mandates, ‘broad-based and all-inclusive’ consultation of key stakeholders in the public and private sectors. In addition, together with the Focal point it should ‘develop co-ordinate and implement the in-country mechanisms of preparing for peer review and hosting the country review team during the review visit’.
Thematic Areas
The APRM process looks at four focus areas as follows:
- Political and Democratic Governance,
- Corporate Governance,
- Economic Governance and Management, and
- Socio-economic Development.
Key Facts
Kenya acceded to the APRM in March 2003, alongside Ghana, Rwanda and Mauritius, in Abuja Nigeria. As of July 2008, 29 countries had formally joined the APRM by signing the MOU on the APRM. . This is more than half of the AU’s 53 countries.
The Kenya APRM Country Review Report of May 2006, was tabled at the APR Heads of State Forum on 30th June 2006, in Banjul, The Gambia. In this forum, H. E. President Mwai Kibaki was subjected to review by his peers. Kenya has subsequently tabled progress reports in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and Accra, Ghana, on the implementation of the APRM National Programme of Action (NPOA).