In 2004, the African Union (AU) Extraordinary Summit on Employment and Poverty Alleviation in Africa held in Ouagadougou in September 2004 adopted a Declaration, Plan of Action and Follow up Mechanism that committed Member states to place employment at the center of their economic and social policies.

The Summit was a culmination of efforts by member states, RECs, tripartite social partners, as well as international partners to address the challenge of employment creation and providing conditions for decent work. It was also a point of departure for more concerted efforts at national, regional and international levels to step up employment creation for poverty alleviation. The Summit adopted three policy documents:

• Declaration on Employment and Poverty Alleviation in Africa

• Plan of Action for the Promotion of Employment and Poverty Alleviation and

• Follow up Mechanism for Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation

While Member States and RECs are the principally responsible for implementation, UN agencies and other international development partners are expected to adopt greater policy coherence and to increase support for the implementation of the above three policy documents.

In 2011, the 19th Ordinary Session of the AU Executive Council decided to hold a Special Session of the Labour and Social Affairs Commission (LSAC) to evaluate the implementation of the 2004 Ouagadougou Declaration and Plan of Action on Employment Promotion and Poverty Alleviation. The 9th Ordinary Session of the AU LSAC (Addis Ababa, April 2013) decided to convene the Special Session in Windhoek, Namibia, from 23 to 25 April 2014 as prelude to an Extraordinary Session of the Assembly in Ouagadougou (Ouaga+10) in September 2014.

The Assembly of the AU accepted the offer of the Government of Burkina Faso to host the Extraordinary Session of the Assembly from 3 to 7 September 2014 to assess the progress in implementation of the 2004 Ouagadougou Declaration and Plan of Action on Employment and Poverty alleviation, under the theme “Employment, Poverty Eradication and Inclusive Development”.

The Extraordinary Assembly is taking place at the end of the year-long celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the OAU/AU that commenced in 2013 and during which an African Agenda for the next 50 years is being developed (African Agenda 2063). The Assembly also convenes at a time when the international community is engaged in defining the Post 2015 Development Agenda. For example Goal 8 and Targets of the proposed Sustainable Development for the Post 2015 Development Agenda states: “Promote strong, inclusive and sustainable economic growth and decent work for all” and has clear targets to “halve the number of youth not in employment, education or training by 2020”; and to “achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities by 2030”. Hence, the Special Session could draw from a wealth of contemporary thoughts and information to enrich its outcomes, particularly from the Common African Position on Post 2015, as it relates to human capital development, job creation, social protection and inclusive development.