Draft Programme of Work - Conference of Ministers

• Statement by Mr. K.Y. Amoako, Executive Secretary, Economic Commission for Africa
• Statement by Mr. Alpha Oumar Konare, Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union
• Statement by the outgoing Chairman of the Commission, Mr. Trevor Manuel, Honourable Minister of Finance, Republic of South Africa
• Opening Address by His Excellency, Mr. Yoweri Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda

The election of a new Bureau will be followed by a short statement by the new Chairperson of the Commission, and the adoption of the agenda and programme of work

Consideration of the Report and Major Recommendations of the Committee of Experts

The Conference will have before it, the report of the twenty-third meeting of the Committee of Experts held in Kampala from 18 to 20 May 2004 (E/ECA/CM.37/9). The report will highlight the major issues considered by the Committee and endorse the conclusions and recommendations. Under this agenda item, ECA's proposed biennial programme plan for the biennium 2006-2007 will also be presented to the Conference for its endorsement.

Ministerial Policy Debate on the theme of the Conference:
Mainstreaming trade policy in national development strategies

The discussions under this agenda item will be organized in two parts. It is proposed that part I focuses on the opportunities and challenges facing African countries in the context of the global trading system. Part II will examine issues related to trade policy and its impact on Africa's development.

These panel discussions will be followed by general discussions and exchange of views, and experiences on best practices in addressing the challenge of expanding trade and mainstreaming trade into national development strategies.

The panel discussions will focus on the opportunities available to African countries as a result of recent preferential trading arrangements such as the Everything-But-Arms (EBA) initiative of the European Union and the Agricultural Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) of the United States. There will also be discussions on the challenges faced by African countries in a bid to take advantage of the opportunities created by these new initiative.

• Chair: Minister of Finance, Uganda

• Moderator: Dr. Kipkorir Aly Rana, Deputy Director-General, World Trade Organization

• Lead Speakers:

• Dr. Karl-Friedrich Falkenberg, Director, Trade Service, European Union
• Ms. Rosa Whitaker, former Assistant United States Trade Representative

• Discussant: An African Minister of Trade

Part II will examine the contribution of trade in achieving higher economic growth and poverty reduction in Africa, and the factors inhibiting Africa's effective participation in global trade. The panel will also propose measures for mainstreaming trade into national development policies and programmes.

• Chair: Minister of Finance, Uganda

• Lead Speaker: Professor Ademola Oyejide

• Discussant: An African Minister of Trade

The Honourable Minister of Finance of the Republic of South Africa, Trevor Manuel, will lead a briefing to the Conference on the work of the Commission for Africa, established by Prime Minister Tony Blair, of which he is a member. The Commission for Africa has been established to galvanise efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Africa. Linah Mohohlo, Governor of the Bank of Botswana, and the ECA Executive Secretary, K.Y. Amoako, who also serve on the Commission for Africa, will provide further input. Their briefing on the main issues the Commission seeks to address will be followed by a general discussion.

• Wrap-up by the Chairman
• Statement by Mr. Omar Kabbaj, President of the African Development Bank
• Closing remarks by Mr. K.Y. Amoako, Executive Secretary, ECA.