Mugabe’s unusual vote of thanks

A five-minute vote of thanks by President Robert Mugabe at the end of the twelfth summit of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa in Nairobi turned into a 45-minute lashing out at foreign powers, especially the United States, Britain and the European Union.

Mugabe blamed the woes of the entire continent on imperialism and colonial intervention?

He also blamed Zimbabwe’s problems on interference by the UK and the US and distorted reporting by the international press.

Mugabe’s remarks received applause from the audience.

Full cable:

Viewing cable 07NAIROBI3021, THE TWELFTH SUMMIT OF THE COMESA AUTHORITY OF

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UNCLAS NAIROBI 003021

SIPDIS

AIDAC

AID/EAST AFRICA COLLECTIVE

STATE FOR AA/AFR, AFR/DP, AFR/SD, AFR/EA, AFR/EGAT/EG

SIPDIS

E.O.12958: N/A

TAGS: OTRA

SUBJECT: THE TWELFTH SUMMIT OF THE COMESA AUTHORITY OF

HEADS OF STATE AND GOVERNMENT. THEME: DEEPENING REGIONAL

INTEGRATION FOR DIVERSIFICATION AND VALUE ADDITION

SUMMARY:

¶1. This is a summary of the Twelfth COMESA Summit

proceedings held in Nairobi, Kenya, from May 22-23,

¶2007. The Summit was preceded by meetings of the

Committee of Experts, Ministers of Justice, Ministers of

Foreign affairs and COMESA Council of Ministers. The

Fourth COMESA Business Summit and the Fourth COMESA

First Ladies Roundtable were also held over the same

period.

¶2. The Authority adopted a common external tariff

structure, with raw materials and capital goods at a

tariff rate of zero percent, intermediate goods at ten

percent, and finished goods at twenty-five percent. The

Authority announced that COMESA will launch its Customs

Union on December 8, 2008. It also determined that the

COMESA Fund will support countries that experience

revenue losses from joining the Free Trade Area and/or

the Customs Union. The fund will also be used for

infrastructure development. The Summit directed the

Council of Ministers Chairperson to convene a summit

meeting between COMESA, the East African Community (EAC)

and the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) in

order to agree on a convergence time table for the three

regional organizations? programs, in accordance with the

requirements of the African Union.

¶3. At the Summit, Zimbabwe was elected as Vice Chair of

the Authority and appointed to host the 2008 Summit.

¶4. This cable provides a list of participants at the

Summit (paragraphs 5 – 9), a summary of the opening

speeches (paragraphs 10-15), the final Summit communiqu

(paragraph 16-32), and additional contact details for

more information (paragraph 33).

ATTENDANCE:

¶5. The Summit was attended by the following COMESA Heads

of State and Government: Mr. Mwai Kibaki, President of

the Republic of Kenya, King Mswati III of the Kingdom of

Swaziland, Mr. Robert Gabriel Mugabe, President of the

Republic of Zimbabwe, Mr. Yoweri K. Museveni, President

of the Republic of Uganda, Mr. Meles Zenawi, Prime

Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia,

Mr. Ismail Omar Guelleh, President of the Republic of

Djibouti, Mr. Paul Kagame, President of the Republic of

Rwanda, Mr. Levy Patrick Mwanawasa, President of the

Republic of Zambia, Mr. Salva Kiir Mayerdit, First Vice

President of the Republic of Sudan, Dr. Martin

Nduwimana, First Vice President of the Republic of

Burundi, Mr Ikilou Nidhoime, First Vice President of the

Union of the Comoros.

¶6. The following Plenipotentiaries represented the Heads

of State and Government of the following COMESA

countries: Murlidhar Dulloo, Minister of Foreign Affairs

of the Republic of Mauritius, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit,

Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Arab Republic of

Egypt, Joyce Banda, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the

Republic of Malawi, Ali A. Triki, Minister for African

Affairs of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Marcel Ranjeva,

Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of

Madagascar, Gata Mavita Ignace, Minister of Regional

Integration of the Democratic Republic of Congo,

Jacquelin P. Dugasse, Minister of Investment, Industries

and Technology of the Republic of Seychelles, and

Stifanos Habte Ghebremariam, Head of the Delegation of

the State of Eriteria.

¶7. Numerous countries were represented by their Special

Envoys to COMESA. Ambassador Carmen Martinez led the

U.S. delegation to the summit. Other envoys to COMESA

were from France, Cuba, Italy, China, Russia, India,

Botswana, Germany, Sweden, and Japan.

¶8. The following representatives from international and

regional organizations participated in the deliberations

of the summit: Commissioner Dr. Maxwell Mkwezelamba of

the African Union, Ms. Anna K. Tibaijuka, Executive

Director of the United Nations Organization in Nairobi

(UNON), Ambassador Julius Onen, Deputy Secretary

General, East African Community (EAC), Ambassador

Liberta Mulamula, Executive Secretary of the

International Conference on the Great Lakes Region

(ICGLR), Mr. G. Onyango, Executive Secretary of the

Northern Corridor Transit Transport Coordination

Authority (NCTTCA), Mr. Charles M. Mbogori, Executive

Director, East African Business Council (EABC), and Dr.

Kandeh K. Umkella, Director General of the United

Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).

¶9. The following represented the COMESA Institutions:

Honorable Nzamba Kitonga, President, COMESA Court of

Justice, Dr. Michael Gondwe, President, Eastern and

Southern Africa Trade and Development Bank (PTA Bank),

Mr. Shadreck Lubasi, Managing Director, PTA Re-Insurance

Company (ZEP-Re), Dr. Kombo Moyana, Executive Secretary,

COMESA Clearing House, Dr. Geremew Debele, Director,

Leather and Leather Products Institute (LLPI), and Mr.

Peter Jones, Managing Director of the African Trade

Insurance Agency (ATI).

¶10. The following organizations were also represented:

the African Development Bank (ADB); the European

Commission (EC), the U.S. Agency for International

Development/East Africa (USAID/EA), World Bank,

Commonwealth Secretariat (COMSEC), Food and Agricultural

Organization (FAO), International Civil Aviation

Organisation (ICAO), Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the

International Labor Organisation (ILO), United Nations

Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the East African

Trade Hub (ECA Hub), Association for Strengthening in

Eastern and Southern Africa (ASERECA), the World Food

Program (WFP), Southern Africa Customs Union,

International Organisation for Migration (IOM), and the

International Organization of the Francophonie(IOF).

OPENING STATEMENTS:

¶10. In his speech, Mwai Kibaki, President of the

Republic of Kenya, expressed gratitude to Djibouti

President Ismail Omar Guelleh, for his contribution to

the COMESA regional agenda. Kibaki announced that the

Summit agenda included taking stock of the status of

COMESA regional integration agenda, reviewing the

implementation of the on-going projects and programs,

and assessing the progress achieved in the

implementation of the Djibouti Summit Declarations. He

emphasized the importance of the proposed Common

External Tariff structure, a cardinal requirement for

the launch of the COMESA Customs Union.

¶11. In the keynote address, the outgoing Chairman of the

COMESA Authority, President Guelleh, announced that the

launch of the COMESA Customs Union will be celebrated on

December 8th, 2008, in Harare Zimbabwe. President

Guelleh noted that Djibouti, as Chair of COMESA,

undertook consultations, immediately after the November,

2006 Summit, with member States that had not yet acceded

to the COMESA FTA. The outcome of these consultations

was that all COMESA non FTA member States had reaffirmed

their commitment to join the FTA at the earliest

opportunity.

¶12. President Guelleh noted that COMESA had achieved

success on the common external tariff structure for the

Customs Union by establishing a four-band system: 0

percent for capital goods, O percent for inputs, 10

percent for semi-finished goods, and 25 percent for

finished goods. He noted that the Council of Ministers

had come up with a Common External Tariff Structure

(CET), which meets the requirements of all COMESA

countries. President Guelleh then noted that an

important feature of this CET structure was that it

provided for “national policy space and flexibility on

specific and limited product lines for reasons of

competitiveness and revenue considerations.” President

Guelleh stated that –taking into account that COMESA

member States had limited savings for investments–

contacts had been initiated with financial institutions

and private investors in the Gulf States, India, and

China to ensure enhanced foreign direct investment in

the region.

¶13. President Guelleh noted the need to urgently address

regional infrastructural challenges. He further observed

that it was common knowledge that COMESA ports, roads,

railways, telecommunications, and energy facilities had

to be redesigned to inter-connect COMESA countries.

They would require new investments as well as upgrades

to existing networks. President Guelleh announced that

COMESA Ministers responsible for Infrastructure had met

jointly and had devised a compendium of infrastructure

projects that require a total investment of USD 28

billion. He also indicated that Djibouti would be

willing to host the COMESA Fund.

¶14. President Guelleh informed the Summit participants

that the cooperation between COMESA, SADC, IGAD, EAC and

IOC, through the Inter-Regional Co-coordinating

Committee, had been positive. The Committee had made

progress toward convergence and the ultimate realization

of an African Economic Community under the African

Union. He observed that the joint COMESA, EAC and SADC

Task Force had also made considerable progress in

harmonizing common programs, thus avoiding duplication

of efforts and waste of scarce resources. He then

proposed that the COMESA members needed to reaffirm

their commitment to the convergence process of the

regional economic communities, at a political level, to

ensure the success of the harmonization efforts.

VOTE OF THANKS:

¶15. King Mswati III of Swaziland thanked President

Kibaki and President Guelleh for their encouraging

statements, which in his view had set the stage for the

deliberations of the Twelfth Summit. Mswati noted that

Kenya has been a key contributor to the integration

agenda of COMESA and further highlighted the importance

of economic integration as a tool for addressing the

challenges of development. He also affirmed that all the

Member States had been confident in the leadership of

President Mwai Kibaki during his tenure as Chairman of

COMESA.

THE FINAL COMMUNIQUE OF THE TWELFTH COMESA SUMMIT:

¶16. At the end of the Summit, the Heads of State and

Government released the following communiqu stating as

follows:

a) ELECTED by acclamation the Republic of Kenya as

Chairman, the Republic of Zimbabwe as Vice-Chairman and

the Republic of Djibouti as Rapporteur

b) NOTED with appreciation the Report of the Secretary

General on the State of Integration in COMESA

c) CONSIDERED AND ADOPTED the Reports of the Twenty

Third Meeting of the Council of Ministers and the Eighth

Meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs

d) ENDORSED the recommendations of the Fourth COMESA

Business Forum and agreed on the need to strengthen

public and private sector partnership

e) ENDORSED the Communiqu of the Fourth Roundtable of

the First Ladies of the COMESA countries which took

place concurrently with the Twelfth COMESA Summit.

¶17. TRADE AND CUSTOMS DEVELOPMENT:

a) NOTED with satisfaction the rapid and sustained

growth in intra-COMESA trade in 2006 over 2005 and

COMMENDED member states for agreeing to remove the

remaining non tariff barriers

b) URGED all Member States not yet participating in the

Free Trade Area (FTA) to join the FTA before the launch

of the COMESA Customs Union on December 8, 2008

c) ADOPTED the COMESA Common External Tariff structure

of a four band category of raw materials, zero percent;

capital goods, zero percent; intermediate goods, ten

percent and final goods twenty-five percent, with the

provision for flexibility on policy space

d) DIRECTED that all the necessary technical work and

implementation modalities on the Common External Tariff

(CET) based on the UN classification system and other

related areas be finalized before the next Summit of

Heads of State and Government to ensure that the Customs

Union is launched on 8th December 2008

e) REAFFIRMED the commitment to launch the COMESA

Customs Union on 8th December 2008

f) DIRECTED all member States to implement the agreed

workings and processing for the Change in Tariff Heading

(CTH) origin conferring criterion

g) AGREED on the need to complete the program on Trade

in Services as its promotion has potential to enhance

growth of all the COMESA economies.

¶18. MONETARY AND FINANCIAL MATTERS:

a) CALLED upon member States who are yet to ratify the

COMESA Fund to do so, in order to enable them to benefit

from the Regional Development Fund

b) NOTED that the COMESA Fund was now in force and

STRESSED the paramount role to be played by the Fund as

one of the regional financial vehicles to receive all

development funding for COMESA from Aid for Trade,

Economic Partnership Agreement and other financial

assistance schemes

c)   ENDORSED the establishment of a COMAid unit in the

COMESA Secretariat to undertake technical analysis and

prepare a coherent Aid for Trade compatible program to

access the available resources under the Aid for Trade

initiative for addressing trade-related infrastructure,

supply-side constraints and economic and social costs of

adjustment arising from the implementation of bilateral,

regional and multilateral trade agreements

d)   CALLED on development partners to support an

ambitious COMESA Aid for Trade Program to be launched in

¶2007.

¶19. MULTILATERAL ISSUES:

a)   NOTED that the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA)

negotiations that were launched in 2004 between Eastern

and Southern Africa countries and the European Union had

made significant progress since the last Summit and are

expected to be concluded in December 2007

b) REAFFIRMED the importance of ensuring that EPA

should be a development tool to support ESA countries to

address the supply side constraints of the region as

well as improve ESA market access to the European Union

(EU)

c) RECALLED the commitment and the decision of EU

Council to provide additional resources for EPA

implementation and adjustment costs, taking into

consideration the regions development needs as spelt out

in the draft development matrix and urged that such

resources be adequate and be provided on a predictable

basis

d) WELCOMED the resumption of the WTO Doha Development

Agenda negotiations earlier this year

e) REITERATED that the WTO negotiation process should

be transparent, all-inclusive and open to all Members

f) STRESSED that the outcome of the WTO Doha

Ministerial Declaration (DDA) should meet the

development expectations of developing and least

developing countries, including COMESA Member States in

line with the letter and spirit of the Doha Ministerial

Declaration.

¶20. INFRASTRUCTURE:

a) COMMENDED the ongoing implementation of Joint Air

Transport Competition Regulations by the responsible

Ministers of COMESA, SADC and EAC and AGREED on the

speedy establishment of the Joint Competition Authority

b) URGED all Member States to implement the COMESA

trade and transit transport facilitation instruments so

as to enhance movement of transit and cross border

traffic

c) AGREED on the need for COMESA to develop a Model

Agreement for Railways Concessioning within the COMESA

region and on the need to facilitate the establishment

of a seamless rail transportation system in the COMESA

region

d) ACKNOWLEDGED the important role of Information

Communication and Technology (ICT) in social and

economic development and COMMENDED the ongoing regional

ICT Broad band initiatives

e) URGED Member States to allocate funds from the

national budgets as their contribution and commitment to

project implementation and REQUESTED Member States to

establish national Private Public Partnership units to

facilitate development of bankable projects

f) DIRECTED the Secretariat to establish a dedicated

Project Preparatory Facility with the mandate to prepare

bankable regional infrastructure projects and negotiate

with potential financiers supported by the project

steering Committees.

¶21. INFORMATION AND NETWORKING

a) URGED the Member states to pursue the adoption of

laws on e-legislation, including on Computer Crime and

Electronic Transactions

¶22. AGRICULTURE:

a) NOTED that the Comprehensive Africa Agricultural

Development Program (CAADP) was being implemented at

both the regional and national levels and urged Member

States to accelerate the rate of its implementation in

order to address issues for increased Agricultural

Production and Food Security in the COMESA region.

b) NOTED progress made in the implementation of the

Agricultural Marketing Promotion and Regional

Integration Project (AMPPRIP) and in particular, noted

that a region-wide and Web-based food and Agricultural

Management Information System (FAMIS) had been designed

and would soon become operational

c) COMMENDED Member States which had attained

Agricultural surplus, during the 2007/2008 marketing

season as a result of progressive policies and support

programs.

¶23. INDUSTRY:

a) URGED Member States to promote value adding

technologies and agro processing Industries as part of

the diversification of their economies

b) APPRECIATED that the Secretariat had, as directed by

the Djibouti Summit, commenced analytical work to

compile an inventory of productive and manufacturing

structures in all Member States in order to identify

existing and potential industries to supply the COMESA

Market

c) INSTRUCTED the Secretariat to undertake further

analytical work in full collaboration with Member States

d) URGED Member States to designate dedicated officers

to serve as National Focal Points for the compilation of

an inventory of the main industrial production and

manufacturing structures.

¶24. PRIVATE SECTOR DEVELOPMENT:

a) COMMENDED the COMESA Business Council and the Kenya

Association of Manufacturers for successfully convening

a Business Forum on the margins of the Summit to promote

Public Private Partnership

b)   AGREED on the need for the Business Community and

other stakeholders to work closely with National

Governments in support of the regional integration

agenda

c) WELCOMED the increased participation of private

sector, NGO and Civil Societies entities in COMESA

Programs.

¶25. LEGAL AND INSTITUTIONAL:

a) ADOPTED the Investment Agreement for the COMESA

Common Investment Area and opened the Agreement for

signature by those States that are ready to sign the

Agreement

b) AGREED on the need to continue strengthening the

COMESA Court of Justice.

¶26. COOPERATION BETWEEN COMESA, OTHER REGIONAL ECONOMIC

COMMUNITIES AND THE AFRICAN UNION:

a) NOTED with satisfaction the enhanced collaboration

between COMESA and other regional organizations in

Africa particularly with EAC, IGAD and IOC in the

framework of the Interregional Coordination Committee

(IRCC) with the objective of achieving program

harmonization and convergence so as to expedite the

realization of the African Economic Community

b) COMMENDED the progress being made in the framework

of the Joint Task Force between COMESA, SADC and EAC to

discuss the coordination and harmonization of the

activities of the three institutions

c) MANDATED the Chairman of the COMESA Authority to

consult with SADC and EAC on the convening of a joint

Summit for the three Regional Economic Communities

(RECs)

d) AGREED that the acceleration of integration of

Africa can best be achieved through the adoption by all

Regional Economic Communities of Convergence criteria

for attaining continental integration under the

coordination of the African Union.

¶27. COOPERATION BETWEEN COMESA AND PARTNERS:

a) EXPRESSED APPRECIATION to the many cooperating

partners for their continued support to the

implementation of COMESA programs and APPRECIATED the

new partnership with the Cooperation Council of the Gulf

States (GCC).

¶28. ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT:

WELCOMED the continued implementation of the COMESA

Gender Policy.

¶29. COMESA INSTITUTIONS:

NOTED with appreciation the operations of the COMESA

Institutions and their positive contributions to the

COMESA integration Agenda.

¶30. PEACE AND SECURITY:

a) REVIEWED the progress made so far in addressing

peace and security issues in the COMESA Region.

b) COMENDED COMESA Member States for their ongoing

efforts in addressing issues of peace and security in

the Common Market as well as the Continent as a whole

and URGED them to intensify their efforts in the search

for modalities for addressing issues of peace and

security as well as post conflict transformation issues

c) RECALLED the mandate adopted in their previous

Summits to focus on addressing the root causes of

conflicts in areas of comparative advantage for COMESA

in trade and investment to compliment the efforts of the

African Union Peace and Security Council and other sub

regional mechanisms

d) NOTED with satisfaction the participation of COMESA

as a building block of the African Union, in the

development and consolidation of the African Union Peace

and Security Architecture through the implementation of

Continental Peace and Security Programs such as the

Continental Early Warning and Response Mechanism as well

as the development of the Continental Policy on Post

Conflict Reconstruction and Development

e) CALLED on COMESA to mainstream its mandate in

conflict prevention in all trade and investment programs

to ensure that Economic Integration serves as a catalyst

for peace, security and stability as envisioned by the

designers of the COMESA Treaty

f) REAFFIRMED the continuous need to enhance solidarity

among Member States of COMESA through adherence to the

principles under which the COMESA Treaty was founded

such as the promotion of good governance, good

neighborliness and the resolution of conflicts through

dialogue

g) CONGRATULATED His Excellency President Joseph Kabila

of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for his

election to the High Office of the President of the

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)

h) CONGRATULATED His Excellency President Marc

Ravalomanana, on his re-election to the High Office of

the President of the Republic of Madagascar

i) COMMENDED AND CONGRATULATED the people and

governments of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)

and Madagascar, for successfully holding peaceful

democratic elections

j) EXPRESSED APPRECIATION to COMESA Member States for

supporting the electoral processes in the two countries

by participating and supporting COMESA Electoral

Observer Missions to the elections

k) NOTED with appreciation the offer made by the

Government of the Republic of Zambia to assist the

Democratic Republic of Congo and other COMESA Member

States emerging out of conflicts in the establishment of

governance systems based on her past experience in

assisting some countries in the region

l) CALLED upon COMESA Member States and the wider

International Community to continue providing support to

the Democratic Republic of Congo and other COMESA Member

States in the Great Lakes Region towards consolidation

of peace and security as well as addressing issues of

post conflict transformation

m) CALLED upon COMESA Member States to work together in

organizing an Investment Conference for the Democratic

Republic of Congo as a contribution to the Post Conflict

Reconstruction and Development of the Country and the

Great Lakes Region as a whole

n) NOTED with appreciation the conclusion of the

Tripoli Consensus on the holding of peace talks on

Darfur and URGED all parties to the Conflict to utilize

this consensus in finding a political solution to the

conflict

o) CALLED upon the International Community to support

and strengthen AMISOM and address the humanitarian needs

of the civilian population in Somalia

p) COMMENDED the Government of the Republic of Uganda

for deploying Peacekeepers to Somalia and the Government

of Burundi in its readiness to deploy peacekeepers to

join AMISOM in Somalia.

¶31. CLOSURE OF THE SUMMIT:

31.1 Vote of Thanks:

a) Robert Mugabe, President of the Republic of Zimbabwe

delivered what was to be a five minute ?Vote of Thanks?

but instead spent 45 minutes lashing out at ?foreign

powers? in general and epically at the UK, U.S., and the

EU. He focused on blaming the woes of the entire

continent on ?imperialism and colonial intervention?

instead of highlighting the main issues discussed by the

meeting such as the Customs Union and ongoing

negotiations with the European Union. Most of the

address was devoted to the political and economic

problems in Zimbabwe (all attributed to interference by

the UK and the U.S. along with distorted reporting by

the international press). Mugabe?s remarks received

applause from the audience. President Mugabe closed by

thanking the COMESA Secretariat for their excellent

support to the Summit and promising that the Summit in

Harare in 2008 would be just as successful.

31.2 Chairman?s Closing Statement:

a) In his closing statement, Kibaki stressed that

achieving and sustaining deeper integration at the level

of Customs Union required addressing the region’s vast

rural and urban infrastructure requirements and

improving the investment climate.

b) He further emphasized the need to improve COMESA’s

ability to produce value-added products for regional and

global markets in the agricultural and industrial

sectors. He underscored the need to pay attention to the

export of “products of the intellect.” President Kibaki

then indicated that the key to this was human resource

development, particularly in science and technology.

c) President Kibaki stressed that stable political and

social conditions were necessary to nurture sustained

growth and integration. He noted that the number of

conflicts had dramatically reduced in the past three

years, thus, making it possible for COMESA to provide

undivided attention to finding lasting solutions to the

remaining conflicts. President Kibaki then indicated

that this Summit had in no small measure contributed to

the Africa Union efforts of re-establishing peace in the

few trouble spots in the COMESA region.

¶33. Key Contacts for more Information:

a)   Visit COMESA at www.comesa.int

b) Stephanie Wilcock, Regional Trade Advisor, USAID

East Africa, Regional Economic Growth and Integration

Office; email: swilcock@usaid.gov.

c) Nzuki Mwania, Regional Trade Policy Specialist,

USAID East Africa, Regional Economic Growth and

Integration Office; email: nmwania@usaid.gov.

SLUTZ

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