On July 13, Rwanda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Vincent Biruta, was in Nairobi for the 43rd Ordinary Session of the African Union (AU) Executive Council. 

The two-day meeting took stock of the progress made in the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which is in line with the AU theme of the year 2023- “Year of AfCFTA: Acceleration of the African Continental Free Trade Area Implementation”.

The Council also considered budget matters, African candidatures within the international system, the progress of ratification and implementation of OAU/AU treaties, updates on the AU institutional reforms and Agenda 2063, as well as the AU theme of the year for 2024 on education, among others.

On the sidelines of the meeting, Minister Biruta held separate bilateral discussions with his then counterpart Alfred Mutua of Kenya and his Ethiopian counterpart Demeke Mekonnen to discuss issues of mutual interest.