African leaders snub Malawi

Malawi has been snubbed by eight African heads of state that were expected to attend the First Extra-Ordinary Summit of the Committee of Ten Heads of State and Government (C10) Championing Education, Science and Technology in Africa slated for the second and third of November.

But information that this publication has from privy sources, reveal that other heads of state turned down the invitation to attend the meeting in  person.

Except for Namibia, eight other countries opted for ministers as delegates to the C10 extraordinary meeting, leaving Malawi and President Peter Mutharika who hosted the event with eggs allover the face.

“10 African presidents told Malawi they were coming for a conference. Excited Malawi prepares, spruces itself up & prints a banner. Then only one, the Namibian president, shows up. This can’t be right” tweeted seasoned journalist, Idriss Ali Nassah.

Another social commentator, Deguzman Kaminjolo, wrote on Facebook: “We were told we will be hosting 10 heads of state. Only one showed up. The other countries sent mere ministers. Ladies and gentlemen, that’s how they look at us outside our borders”

Among those expected to attend was President of Kenya, Uhuru Kenyatta.

There was no immediate comment from government as to what had transpired for the other heads of state not to show up.

10 African presidents told Malawi they were coming for a conference. Excited Malawi prepares, spruces itself up & prints a banner.
Then only one, the Namibian president, shows up.

This can't be right. pic.twitter.com/Mm0zdzafaY

— Idriss A. Nassah (@mynassah) November 4, 2018

The Committee of Ten Heads of State and Government (C10) Championing Education, Science and Technology in Africa was instituted by the AU in 2016 after noting that education, science, technology and innovation remain the primary instruments that will enable Africa to effectively implement its long-term vision of a transformative Agenda 2063, in spite of the challenges facing its development.

The Committee is chaired by Macky Sall, President of Senegal who is deputized by Malawi President Peter Mutharika.

The composition of the Committee includes two Presidents from each of AU’s Five Continental Regions and draws its membership from Chad, Egypt, Gabon, Kenya, Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Tunisia.

The AU announced that the extraordinary summit aimed at agreeing on a framework  to champion the role of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation as a crucial catalyst for economic growth on the continent through enhanced investment and strategic multi-sectoral private and public sector partnerships in the development of Education, Training and Research.