Khartoum, 20 December 2022 - The Chairman of the Transitional Sovereign Council, General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, received in his office a high-level delegation of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) led by Ambassador Aly Houssam ElHefny, Lead APR Panel member for the Republic of Sudan who was accompanied by Mr. Ferdinand Katendeko, Director of Operations, Dr. Valery Yao, Country Coordinator for Sudan and Mr. Abubakr Siddig, ICT Officer. Dr. Saif Al-Dawla Bashir Abdullah, Acting APRM Focal Point and Ambassador Al-Zain Ibrahim Hussein, Director of the African Union Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also attended the meeting. The mission was intended to engage the highest authorities on the launch of the Governance Gap Analysis Report and assess the preparedness of Sudan to receive a Targeted Review Mission on Unconstitutional changes of Government (UCG).
In his welcome remarks, the Acting Focal Point thanked the Chairman and the Members of the Transitional Sovereign Council for the political will geared towards the country’s democratic transformation as evidenced by the signing of the framework agreement and cooperation with all regional and international partners.
On behalf of the APR Panel of Eminent Persons and the CEO of the APRM Continental Secretariat, Prof. Eddy Maloka, Amb. Aly Houssam ElHefny expressed his gratitude to H.E Gen. Abdelfattah Al-Burhan, members of the Transitional Sovereign Council and the Government of Sudan, who have spared no effort to respond spontaneously and enthusiastically to the call for engagement of APRM. He further appreciated the key role played by the Ag. Focal Point, the National Governing Council (NGC) and the National Secretariat which led to the confirmation of the mission. According to the Panel member, since its accession to APRM, Sudan has been one of the most active APRM member States, in consistently demonstrating its commitment to good governance and its ability to face challenges with enthusiasm, hope and faith.
The Sudan Country Review Report was peer-reviewed by the APR Forum held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 27 January 2018. Furthermore, the Governance Gap Analysis Mission which was pioneered by Sudan at the request of the Transitional Government was an expression of APRM’s solidarity and support to Sudan in finding lasting solutions to the political and socioeconomic challenges faced by the country. However, the Governance Gap Analysis is yet to be officially launched in the Country. He added that the current Technical Sensitisation mission to Sudan is another step to show solidarity with the country in the current transitional period.
In his response, H.E Gen. Abdelfattah Al-Burhan, the Chairman of the Transitional Sovereign Council expressed his heartfelt gratitude to APRM for the consistent support to Sudan. He further said that the Council has achieved various milestones, including the establishment of a framework for inclusive dialogue which is warmly received by all stakeholders. The Chairman also said that Sudan is steadily working towards creating the conducive environment for lifting the sanctions imposed by the African Union (AU) and the international community. He concluded by saying that Sudan needs the outcome of APRM assessments which will be beneficial to the Sudanese people. Therefore, Sudan stands ready to launch the Governance Gap Analysis Report and receive a Targeted Review Mission on UCG in 2023.
Prior to this visit, the APRM delegation paid courtesy calls on H.E Osman Hussein, Acting Prime Minister, Amb. Ali El-Sadig Ali, Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Acting APRM Focal Point, Dr. Saif Al-Dawla Bashir Abdullah.
