Hon Speaker, before I answer the question, I would just like to say a word on the importance of this day. One hundred years ago, on this day, the most notorious Native Land Act of 1913, passed by the then all-white Parliament of South Africa, came into operation. This Act was a culmination of the most gross injustice against the indigenous people of our land. It is an injustice that is the root cause of the poverty and inequalities that deface our country even to this day. I trust that every party represented in this House will add its voice to the condemnation of this and unreservedly commit itself to joining hands with us in undoing this crime against our people. Thank you for allowing me to say these words. [Applause.]
Hon Speaker, I now turn to Question 7. At this time of the 50th anniversary of the birth of the Organisation of African Unity/African Union, let me say that we regard the African Agenda as the cornerstone of our country's foreign policy. The focus of our African Agenda has been particularly on five areas: peace and security; participating in continental regional organisations; contributing to the fight against the underdevelopment of our continent; promoting democracy throughout Africa; and defending the interests of Africa in global affairs.
As part of the continent, we are enjoined to promote all that is good about our continent, and use the natural and human resource strengths of Africa to build a better Africa which is peaceful, democratic, united and prosperous.
At the World Economic Forum in Cape Town we expressed our view of the kind of Africa we aspire to being in the next 50 years. We are building an Africa that is united, integrated and free from the scourge of poverty; an Africa that has conducive conditions for trade and investment; an Africa that will enable the creation of sustainable and decent jobs for our people, particularly the youth; an Africa that is industrialised and is aligned with strategic like-minded partners; and an Africa that can be competitive in the global market.
These aspirational intentions are clearly enshrined in Pan-Africanism and the African Renaissance. The chairperson of the AU Commission recently engaged with all sectors of our society across the continent in order to put together the vision of citizens of Africa of the type of continent we would like to see by the time the African Union, AU, celebrates its 100th anniversary. This view of citizens on the ground is captured in the AU vision for 2063.
The AU has created instruments to enable the achievement of these objectives, and South Africa participates fully in the work of these institutions. The creation of the continental African Peace and Security Architecture, the New Partnership for Africa's Development and the African Peer Review Mechanism are just some of the mechanisms that are taking us forward in promoting the African Agenda, especially in addressing Africa's security and economic challenges.
On building a prosperous Africa, South Africa advocates the integration of Africa's economies and increased intra-Africa trade as part of promoting an African free trade area.
Taking advantage of the fact that some of the world's fastest growing countries are African countries, we also continue to play a role in promoting infrastructure development to unlock intra-African trade. Currently South Africa chairs the AU Nepad Presidential Infrastructure Champion Initiative and also champions and supports the overarching AU Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa. Our task is to champion the North-South Corridor, from Cape to Cairo, to achieve the dream of Kwame Nkrumah of infrastructure that connects the continent.
Pan-Africanism and the African Renaissance also inform our engagement with the world. Thus, at the G20, Brics, and World Economic Forum, and in bilateral relations, we continue to promote Africa and positions that will take its development forward. It is for this reason that the fifth Brics Summit in Durban had an African Retreat component to enable us as Africans to engage the Brics countries on matters of importance to the continent.
Most importantly, we need to promote Pan-Africanism as a way of life that informs our identity as Africans. This means we should look beyond economic development to our cultural and social identity and our frame of mind. Let us recall the lines of the African Union anthem. It says:
Let us all unite and celebrate together The victories won for our liberation Let us dedicate ourselves to rise together To defend our liberty and unity
O Sons and Daughters of Africa Flesh of the Sun and Flesh of the Sky Let us make Africa the Tree of Life
Let us all unite and sing together To uphold the bonds that frame our destiny Let us dedicate ourselves to fight together For lasting peace and justice on earth
Let us all unite and toil together To give the best we have to Africa The cradle of mankind and fount of culture Our pride and hope at break of dawn.
I am sure if we all learnt and sang the continental anthem, it would do our continent good, because it tells the story of who we are and what we need to do together. I am saying this because not many of us at the southern tip of Africa sing this song, the continental anthem of the AU. It says a lot. It says who we are, how we define ourselves and what our task as citizens of the continent is. [Applause.]
When we sing the African Union anthem, we need to do so fully appreciating our being part of an independent Africa, and we need to work harder to achieve economic independence for Africa as a whole. This means promoting African unity and co-operation amongst the African nations, for we have one future. Then we will have achieved our freedom as the African people, from Cape to Cairo, and from Morocco to Madagascar. To achieve these goals, we fully support the African Union and play our part in building the Africa envisaged on the formation of the Organisation of African Unity. I thank you. [Applause.]