The Secretariat of the Russia—Africa Partnership Forum held a presentation in Moscow involving the following participants: Mikhail Bogdanov, Special Presidential Representative for the Middle East and Africa and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation; Oleg Ozerov, Ambassador-at-Large and Head of the Secretariat of the Russia—Africa Partnership Forum; Yevgeny Primakov, Head of Rossotrudnichestvo and Head of the Public Council of the Secretariat of the Russia—Africa Partnership Forum; Irina Abramova, Director of the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Alexander Stuglev, Chairman of the Board and CEO of the Roscongress Foundation; Head of the Coordinating Council of the Russia—Africa Partnership Forum; Alexander Saltanov, Head of the Association of Economic Cooperation with African States (AECAS). Other attendees included ambassadors of African states and representatives of African and Russian business unions, Russian AECAS member companies, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and other government agencies.
«Russia and African states have long been linked by political, trade, economic, cultural, and historical ties. Changes that can be witnessed both in Africa and in the world at large required an update to the entire spectrum of Russian-African relations. The first Russia—Africa Summit, a truly historic event that took place in Sochi in October last year was a response to these challenges. It convincingly illustrated that Russia and its friends in Africa see each other as important and promising partners. The Summit has laid the foundation for the new interaction architecture between Russia and Africa. To provide efficient functionality for this new dialogue mechanism the Secretariat of the Russia—Africa Partnership Forum has been created. This structure aims to coordinate the entire range of our relations with the African countries. It will oversee the formation of interagency expert groups that will come up with tangible solutions to develop and enrich economic, research, and humanitarian cooperation with the preparation for new Summits in mind,» noted Mikhail Bogdanov.
The event hosted a signing ceremony of a cooperation agreement between the Roscongress Foundation and the Association of Economic Cooperation with African States (AECAS). CEO and Chairman of the Roscongress Foundation Alexander Stuglev and AECAS Head Alexander Saltanov agreed to partner up to ensure effective communication between expert, business, and political communities of Russia and African states.
«The first Russia—Africa Summit and Economic Forum was a landmark event and achievement that made it possible to bring together all key politicians and business representatives from Russia and the African continent, establish contacts and agree on future cooperation areas. The second Russia—Africa event, in turn, will demonstrate the results of our efficient interaction, and, above all, economic results. Well-coordinated work of the Secretariat, all departments and organizations will help make our joint international activities more efficient, as teamwork is the key component of success,» noted Oleg Ozerov, who was appointed Ambassador-at-Large and Head of the Secretariat of the Russia—Africa Partnership Forum in April 2020.
As part of its preparation for the next Summit in 2022, the Secretariat will create roadmaps with specific performance targets, as well three interagency councils. Each of the councils will cover its own line of work. In addition to authorities, agencies and the Roscongress Foundation, representatives of the Russian business and key business associations will participate in the Council.
The Coordinating Council will be the part of the Secretariat. It will define the key areas for development of events, economic and informational agenda, as well as specific plans for preparation of the next Russia—Africa Summit roadmap. The Council will include government agencies, public officials, and representatives of the Roscongress Foundation, Russian business, and key business associations. The Coordinating Council will be led by CEO and Chairman of the Roscongress Foundation Alexander Stuglev.
The Research Council will be chaired by Irina Abramova, Director of the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Participants of the Council will work on economic and political analysis, forecasts, and research that will pave the way for the activities of the Secretariat’s Coordinating Council. The Research Council will be supported by leading scientific and educational organizations.
Social, humanitarian and cultural areas will be coordinated by the Public Council. It will cover various aspects of humanitarian cooperation, as well as collaboration in education, cultural exchange, and contacts between youth communities, including Russian alumni associations. The Council will be headed by Yevgeny Primakov, Head of Rossotrudnichestvo.
The councils will closely cooperate and hold regular meetings, under the control and with the participation of the Russian—Africa Partnership Forum Secretariat.
The Secretariat’s functions, among others, will include organization of political consultations and events, in particular, the annual meeting of Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and three chairpersons of the African Union (current, previous and next), coordination of cooperation development, political and diplomatic support for projects in African countries and all other necessary activities for preparation and holding of the upcoming Russia—Africa Summits.
Official website of the Russia-Africa Summit and Economic Forum: summitafrica.ru
