The Sudanese government announced the suspension of its engagement with the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD) concerning the current crisis in Sudan.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Djibouti, who is also the Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the Chairperson of the NEPAD Ministerial Council, was officially notified through a formal letter of the Sudanese government’s decision to cease its participation and freeze interactions with AUDA-NEPAD in addressing the current challenges in Sudan. He was designated as the interim chair of the ongoing NEPAD session.
The Sudanese government attributed this decision to what it described as transgressions committed by AUDA-NEPAD by “including the situation in Sudan on the agenda of the 42nd extraordinary summit of the Heads of State and Government of AUDA-NEPAD scheduled to be held in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, on January 18, 2024, without consulting Sudan.”
The government highlighted the invitation extended to the Commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Lt. Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, to participate in the emergency summit in Kampala. It deemed this act a “serious precedent” in the history of AUDA-NEPAD and regional and international organizations.
The government considered it a grave violation of Sudan’s sovereignty and a serious breach of the charters of AUDA-NEPAD and the rules governing the operations of international and regional organizations, according to the statement issued by the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.