President Paul Kagame delivers acceptance speech after being sworn-in as Chairperson of the AU
The AU chairperson chairs the bi-annual AU summits and also represents the continent in international summits , like the G8 and G20 summits . This will be the second position President Paul Kagame is holding , after being chosen to also lead the African Union Reform Process in 2016 .
In his acceptance speech delivered against the backdrop of the theme of the year 2018 : “ Winning the Fight against Corruption : A Sustainable Path to Africa ’ s Transformation ”, President Paul Kagame said it is a solemn honour to accept the call to serve as Chairperson of our Union . He expressed his gratitude to the Heads of State for their double trust - first as the leader of the reform process and now as the leader of the African Union .
“ I promise to do this with you and do the best job I can . Obviously , I will need your full support ” he said , before acknowledging the high experience of his predecessor , saying “ President Alpha Condé is a professor , a teacher , and I can safely say that I have learned from him . I have also seen his very big heart for Africa . Congratulations Mr President ”. He called on his peers to join him in paying tribute to President Conde ’ s impeccable service to our organisation . “ I have been lucky to work with his predecessor President Idriss Deby , and even luckier , to work with both of them . I want to assure you that I had a lot of wisdom flowing from them ”, noted the newly elected Chair of the Union .
President Paul Kagame underlined that Africa ’ s defining challenge is to create
6 • RWANDA • 2018