 My name is Solomon Ayele Derso. I'm the founding director of Amara African Media and Research Services. I'm here at the US Institute of Peace for a research project that Amara Africa is working with USIP on USIP's engagement with the African Union, particularly its peace and security work. One has to do with the progress made around the operationalization of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement. More specifically, as you know, the African Union's Team of the Year for 2023 is acceleration of the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area. Other issues of interest have to do with one, the socio-economic, the dire socio-economic conditions on the continent. They received quite a lot of attention because many economists on the continent are going through very difficult times, whether it is in terms of cost of living of people, whether it is in terms of date, whether it is in terms of inflation or in terms of the performance of the currencies of countries on the continent. And finally, peace and security issues also received a great deal of attention during the course of the summit with a particular focus on, for example, what is happening in Eastern DRC, in respect of which there was actually a summit level meeting by the Peace and Security Council of the African Union. I think this is a very important question. Actually, it came up during the very opening session of the summit. They highlighted how the particularly economic conditions are hurting the continent so very terribly. And in part, actually, Secretary General Guterres associated and linked these conditions with the global multilateral system, particularly the multilateral financial institutions. These conditions that African countries are facing either result also of, whether it is from a COVID-19 pandemic perspective or from a perspective of the war in Ukraine. They have created these shocks and these shocks are now being felt by the economies of the continent, but they are also a product of the way access to development finance is organized and provided. Often, it is very difficult for African countries to have access to development finance. When they do have access, it is on very punishing terms. And what that entails is basically we need to have a reform of the multilateral financial system and institutions in order really to address what may be considered to be some of the fundamental challenges, particularly as these relate to, for example, meeting the sustainable development goals, which are part of what the world committed in terms of creating a more peaceful and a more inclusive societies in the world. And we are very, very far from that. Not just far, but actually we are experiencing regressions in that respect. First, I think the priority that needs to be given in terms of the engagement of the U.S. First, in terms of narratives, it's important that as far as narrative goes, it is said that this is a partnership. If it is a partnership, then it doesn't have to be projected in terms of U.S. countering China or countering Russia. It has to be U.S. engaging Africa as a partner and therefore on issues of mutual concern and interest. And one other shift very important from the U.S. perspective is the partnership with Africa needs to be looked at away from the traditional way of looking at Africa through the humanitarian or the security principle, not so much through the trade investment and development finance dimension and use of tools perspective.