Kigali, 1-3 October 2023 – the Retreat of the African Union Executive Council convened in Kigali, under the theme “Accelerating the Implementation of Agenda 2063. It brought together 500 participants including ministers in charge of Foreign Affairs, Finance and Development Planning, and the African Union Commission senior officials to discuss the second decade of Agenda 2063.

In his opening remarks, Minister Vincent Biruta called upon the participants to pay full attention to the considerable challenges that Africa is facing in areas such as poverty reduction, job creation, free movement of people, and peace and security.

"We therefore look forward to discussing at length how we can better finance, domesticate, coordinate, and build the capacities of actors in the delivery of the Agenda." Minister Biruta emphasized.  

At its closure, Minister Biruta commended the commitments expressed in this retreat to make the second decade of Agenda 2063 a success.

"The challenges observed in the implementation of the first ten years of genda2063, cannot and will not obstruct our resolve to move forward and accelerate the implementation," he stressed.

On the sidelines of the AU Retreat, Minister Biruta held various engagements including a bilateral meeting with Maneesh Gobin, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade of Mauritius. The two ministers signed a General Cooperation Agreement and a Memorandum of Understanding in the field of Information Communication Technology. View the pictures here

He also met with Amb Tete Antonio, Angola’s Minister of Foreign Affairs. Their discussion focused on further strengthening cooperation between Rwanda and Angola. View pictures here

Click here to see the pictures of the opening of the AU Retreat

Click here to see the pictures of the closing of the AU Retreat