II. 1 Report of Activities

The afternoon meetings were dedicated to the Alliance's General Assembly. The Executive Secretary of the Alliance, Mr. Emmanuel Ibo Bainguié, Director of the Quality of Life in the City of Abidjan, reported on the activities of the Alliance for the past biennium (see annex 1). The Alliance achieved the goals it had given itself in the workplan approved during its first General Assembly at the Abidjan Africities Meeting in 1998. It successfully mobilised mayors and municipal leaders throughout Africa, and increased its membership to include 70 municipalities in 17 countries. Furthermore, three countries (Tanzania, Côte d'Ivoire, and Swaziland) have officially launched their national chapters of the Alliance, and a few more have taken steps to launch their national chapters in the year 2000 (Uganda, Kenya, Namibia and Lesotho).

Mayors have also become more actively involved in a multisectoral response to the epidemic and have prepared plans of action for their municipalities, based on the AMICAALL strategy, the orientation document that was developed by the Alliance with support from UNDP (see annex 2).

Mr. Emmanuel Ibo Bainguié, Directeur de la Qualité de Vie de la Ville d'Abidjan and Executive Secretary of the Alliance.

A newsletter, outlining experiences of several municipalities and sharing other substantive information, was prepared and disseminated to all the members, and other interested partners at regional and global level.

The Alliance launched a logo contest to raise awareness among individuals and organisations on issues related to HIV/AIDS, its developmental implications and the role of local government. It was also an opportunity to contribute actively to UNAIDS 1999 Campaign "Listen, Learn and Live: World AIDS Campaign with Children and Young People".

Advocacy efforts included presentations in a plenary panel presentation on HIV, Poverty and the Role of Local Government at the World Alliance of Cities Against Poverty (WACAP) Forum in Lyon, in October 1998; at the United States Conference on AIDS in Denver, Colorado in November 1999; meetings with United Nations and United States government officials in October 1999; and a presentation on World AIDS Day in California at the request of US Congresswoman, Juanita Millender-McDonald (CA, 37^th district), in addition to numerous advocacy efforts within the sub-continent.

II. 2 Presentation of the African Mayors' Initiative for Community Action on AIDS at the Local Level (AMICAALL) Strategy

The report of activities was followed by a presentation on the AMICAALL strategy, by Mr. Fisho Mwale, co-founder and first deputy-coordinator of the Alliance.

The main objective of AMICAALL is to develop and implement multi-sectoral responses to the HIV epidemic at the local government level via a consultative process with civil society organisations, and community leaders. Its strategy is to strengthen the capacity of local government, create multi-sectoral partnerships, identify and support local responses to HIV, set up micro-grant mechanism to fund local action; and create capacity for scaling up, and disseminating the AMICAALL process (see annex 3).

Member municipalities agree to disseminate principles, and implement multi-sectoral responses to HIV, by developing their HIV/AIDS action plans and fostering an enabling environment favourable to cooperation among diverse partners.

AMICAALL municipal teams receive technical assistance, develop project proposals for funding, and supervise execution of micro-projects. They are supported by, and receive advice from, the Policy Round Table which includes mayors, community leaders, and key policy makers from relevant ministries.

II. 3 Strengthening Institutional Capacity

Mayor Mthembu and Professor Kanté

Professor Babacar Kanté, Dean of the Faculty of Law and Political Science of the University Gaston Berger in St Louis, Sénégal, presented possible modifications of the Alliance structure so that it would be more responsive to the increasing requests from its members for capacity strengthening at national level. Professor Kanté has been involved with the Alliance since its inception, and he prepared its current Statutes. He outlined the change of context since the creation of the Alliance, in particular the more favourable political environment, as demonstrated by the commitment of the United Nations to intersectoral action on HIV/AIDS, and increased decentralisation. He noted that the structure of the Alliance, which was tailored for maximum flexibility, and has been successful in achieving its programme of work, is now being requested to provide more systematic support for capacity building.

The basic principles of legitimacy, transparency and efficiency need to be clearly defined, and linked to structures that are most appropriate to strengthening the Alliance. The composition, attributes, and operating procedures of the General Assembly and Executive Office must also be reviewed. Most importantly, the effective operationalisation of AMICAALL will immediately require a more permanent structure located in Africa.

Professor Kanté's presentation allowed the members of the General Assembly to review the array of questions to consider in order to modify the statutes and structure of the Alliance and reinforce its performance. It was agreed that a small working group would be formed and would undertake this task, to be completed within the next six months. UNDP was invited to participate in the working group.

The Special Session recommended that following the success of the African Mayors' Initiative for Community Action on AIDS at Local Level (AMICAALL), a permanent secretariat be established. The Alliance also accepted the most generous offer from the Government of Namibia to provide the facilities and initial support for the establishment of this permanent secretariat.

II. 4 Proposed Workplan 2000 - 2002 and Next Steps

Two-year Workplan

¬ Strengthen the Alliance, and its resource mobilisation capacities, and review its structure:

¬ Revise the Statutes
¬ Establish a permanent Secretariat

¬ Pursue the mobilisation of African mayors and municipal leaders, and encourage them to become actively involved in a multisectoral response to the epidemic

¬ Publish the newsletter regularly

¬ Promote the goals of the Alliance in conferences, meetings and other regional and international fora

¬ Encourage the creation of national chapters of the Alliance, and the implementation of the goals and objectives outlined in the Abidjan Declaration, and the AMICAALL strategy
¬
Dr. Emmanuel Ibo Bainguié, Executive Secretary of the Alliance, presented the proposed workplan for the next biennium, reiterating the need to strengthen the Alliance through a revision of its statutes, resource mobilisation, and advocacy.

Participants offered comments and suggestions with regard to the future of the Alliance. Most were adamant that the Alliance needed to expand, and increase its outreach efforts to mobilise the greatest number of mayors and municipal leaders throughout Africa.

Some suggested that member municipalities should contribute financially to the Alliance, which would provide a basis for basic expenses, and would also indicate commitment on their part.

Other suggestions included the organisation of regular forums for national chapter coordinators, and strenghtening the linkages with existing associations of local governments.

Next steps were outlined, and in the weeks following the Africities meeting, the Alliance will establish a working group to assess and propose an enhanced structure. Mr. Mobio, on behalf of the Alliance, also warmly welcomed the City of Windhoek's generous offer to host the AMICAALL Secretariat.

III. Closing Ceremony

The Closing Ceremony was graced by Namibia's Prime Minister, His Excellency Hage Geingob, who commended the Alliance for its work, and the political will and social responsibility of its members.

He argued that locally induced and led action is a fundamental complement to national policy, and municipalities are well placed to develop effective partnerships with local and grass-roots organisations, as well as with regional, and international organisations and donors.

He recognised that the "Alliance and its Programme of Action AMICAALL help create effective synergies among those representing the state, other spheres of government, civil society, and communities. It is promoting the sharing of knowledge and experience both in the sub-region and globally - and helps create a more enabling environment for decentralised action on HIV/AIDS". He noted that initiatives such as the Alliance represent a good example of how Africans care, and are engaged in the response to HIV (see annex 4).

Prime Minister Hage Geingob thanking Mayor Mthembu at the Closing Session

The Prime Minister concluded on a light, but nontheless serious note, as he recommended that people use condoms if they could not stay faithful to one partner.

IV. Conclusion

The Alliance's participation in the Africities Meeting was very successful. Over a hundred mayors and municipal leaders from throughout the continent attended the special day-long session of the Alliance, and contributed insightful comments and suggestions. A number of mayors also joined the Alliance during the meeting. In particular, the chairman of the Nigerian Association of Mayors expressed, on behalf of its members, an intention to join the Alliance.

The next day, during the Africities plenary session, Mayor Mobio summarised the proceedings of the meeting, and a communication was shared with the participants (see annex 5).

The Alliance is also very pleased that one of its members, Cllr. Fikile Mthembu, mayor of Manzini, Swaziland, received the special prize of the Africities for innovative work on HIV/AIDS.

The interest of all participants showed a commitment to continue efforts to respond in more effective ways to the devastating impact of the HIV epidemic on the African continent, in more effective ways. The Alliance seized the opportunity of the Special Session to reiterate its commitment and dedication to work at local level to alleviate the suffering created by the epidemic.