(NEWS) Samuel Kame-Domguia to Celebrate First African Day of the Seas and Oceans at WMU

July

2014

Samuel Kame-Domguia to Celebrate First African Day of the Seas and Oceans at WMU

Mr. Samuel Kame-Domguia, Coordinator of the African Union’s (AU) 2050 Africa Integrated Maritime Strategy Task Force (2050 AIM-Strategy) will be joining WMU on 25 July for a three-day program of events marking the first observance of African Day of the Seas and Oceans.

The AU’s 2050 AIM-Strategy Task Force is a multidisciplinary team of international cross-sectoral maritime experts at the AU Commission who are responsible for the comprehensive vision of promoting Africa’s maritime resources as well as the economy surrounding the continent’s maritime industry. This past January, the 22nd Ordinary Session of the AU Assembly declared the decade of 2015-2025 as the Decade of African Seas and Oceans, and 25 July specifically as African Day of Seas and Oceans.

WMU Professor Larry Hildebrand is a recently appointed member of the AU’s Expert Group on the Pan-African Governance Policy. His efforts, and the support of current students from Africa at WMU, made the first celebration of African Day of Seas and Oceans at WMU possible as well as the visit of Mr. Kame-Domguia.

The celebration will include a series of workshops allowing both current M.Sc. and Ph.D. students from Africa the opportunity to learn about the implementation plan for the AIM-Strategy, including the significance of the AU’s African Decade of the Seas and Oceans 2015-2025 to their respective regions. The event will also provide the opportunity for the students to present recommendations drafted by their own regional African Working Groups directly to Mr. Kame-Domguia.

There are 60 students from Africa, representing 15 different countries, that are currently studying at WMU. Africa ranks second in terms of regions with the most WMU graduates with 993 alumni. The countries with the highest numbers of graduates include Nigeria, Ghana, the United Republic of Tanzania, Kenya, Cameroon, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Liberia, Malawi, and Sierra Leone respectively.

For further details about the 2050 AIM-Strategy and its Plan of Action, please visit: www.au.int/maritime

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