South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has been appointed African Union Champion on COVID-19, The African Union Bureau of Assembly of Heads of State and Government (AU Bureau) discloses in a statement.
Confirming the development, Tyrone Seale, Acting Spokesperson to President Ramaphosa says in the statement that the decision was reached during the 34th Ordinary Session of the AU held on 06 February 2021.
The statement highlights that as AU Champion on COVID-19, President Ramaphosa established a Commission on African COVID-19 Response.
The Commission, chaired by the President and deputised by the Director of Africa Centres for Disease Control and Infection (Africa CDC), Dr John Nkengasong, held its inaugural meeting on 22 June 2021.
“The establishment of this Commission recognises and advances the crucial role played by President Ramaphosa in driving the continental COVID-19 response during his tenure as Chair of the African Union in 2020. During this time the following critical milestones were attained:
• The development and endorsement of the Africa Joint Continental Strategy for COVID-19 Outbreak
• The establishment of the Africa Task Force for Coronavirus (AFTCOR)
• The development and establishment of the African Medical Supplies Platform (AMSP)
• The establishment of the COVID-19 African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team (AVATT) to secure financing for and acquire vaccines
• Coordinating communications across the continent around COVID-19 as well as the contributions of the AU Bureau to the continental COVID-19 response
• The appointment of AU Special Envoys for COVID-19,” reads the communication in part.
The Commission’s overarching goal is to support President Ramaphosa in his Championship role in order to enable his continued leadership in guiding the continental response to COVID-19.