President John Agyekum Kufuor has left Accra for Durban, South Africa to attend the 38th Organisation of African Unity (OAU) Heads of Government summit, which opens on Monday. Ms Elizabeth Ohene, Minister of State and Ambassador D K Osei, Secretary to the President accompanied him to the historic summit, the last for the OAU, which would be transformed into the African Union (AU). Foreign Affairs Minister, Hackman Owusu Agyeman, is already in South Africa, leading an advance party to participate in meetings of the OAU Permanent Representatives and the 76th Ordinary Ministerial session of the Council of Ministers.

He will also be part of the Ministerial Session that will consider the draft rules of the key organs of the African Union. A statement issued by Government Spokesman, Kwabena Agyepong said the summit will consider recommendations made by the working group and determine the shape AU would take as well as objectives of the Constitutive Act.

Some of the issues to be discussed would be the draft protocols on the AU Mechanism for conflict prevention, management and resolution. It would also hear a report on the activities of the Organisation in the past year from the Secretary General and efforts to address conflicts on the continent and the NEPAD initiative.

At the last ordinary Assembly of Heads of State held in Lusaka, Zambia, in July 2001, OAU Secretary General was mandated to confer with member states to work out modalities and guidelines for the launching of the organs of African Union.