A groundbreaking ceremony was conducted by the African Union (AU) for the construction of a service centre christened AU Integrated Services Center, at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The centre which is going to be carried out by a Chinese firm- Anhui Foreign Economic Construction Company (AFECC) is set to include among others things, an accreditation facility, a cafeteria and the AU Archives and Exhibition Center.
Several facilities and services will be provided in the new center that will aid the AU manage its summits, meetings and conferences better and faster.
Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, chairperson of the AU Commission, Erastus Mwencha, Deputy Chairperson of the AU Commission, Kuang Weilin, Head of Chinese Mission to AU, and Jiang Zhaoyao, CEO of AFECC, other officials of the pan-African bloc, diplomats and dignitaries were all in attendance during the groundbreaking ceremony in Ethiopia’s capital city.
The development is projected to provide much-needed space for the preservation of AU’s heritage in the form of the rich archival materials of Pan-Africanism, African people’s struggles for independence and self-determination and evolution of the African Union.
On the exhibition space, materials from African history, myriad publications by AU and its specialized agencies will be displayed.
“Indeed, this is an achievement and we would like it in both physical and digital forms to become an attraction for scholars and historians from across the continent,” said Dlamini-Zuma.
She further applauded China for their unending support to AU’s projects that indeed strengthen the mutual friendship, solidarity and prosperity with Africa.
“We are particularly grateful for the longstanding and ongoing friendship and cooperation with the government of the People’s Republic of China, who continue to render support to the African Union, including the Conference Center and Offices inaugurated in 2012 and now the AU Integrated Services Center,” she said.
AFECC was founded in 1992 and has successfully undertaken more than 50 large and medium projects over the past two decades. Jiang Zhaoyao, CEO of AFECC expressed his companies’ commitment to accomplish the latest project with quality and deliver it as per the schedule.
