ASS/AU/Dec. 5 (I) Page 1 RESOLUTION ON THE PROCLAMATION BY THE AFRICAN UNION OF A CAPACITY BUILDING DECADE IN AFRICA We, Heads of State and Government of Member States of the African Union meeting in Durban, South Africa, from 9 to 10 July 2002. RECOGNIZING the vital importance of Capacity Building for our countries and having taken and continuing to take measures to make Capacity Building a clear and intersectoral priority of our development policies, strategies and programmes, CONSCIOUS of the efforts deployed by the international community to promote the strengthening and/or consolidation of the capacities of various sectors in Africa, BEARING IN MIND the objectives and principles enshrined in the Charter of the Organization of African Unity of 25 May 1963, particularly its articles I, II and III, CONSIDERING the 3 June 1991 Treaty establishing the African Economic Community, and the various other decisions, declarations, resolutions and joint declarations aimed at promoting the economic, social and cultural integration of our continent, RECALLING the Sirte Declaration of 9 September 1999 adopted by the Fourth Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, RECALLING ALSO the adoption of the Constitutive Act of the African Union by the Thirty? sixth Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government held in Lome, Togo from 10 to 12 July 2001, as subsequently ratified by two thirds of Member States, ALSO BEARING IN MIND the New African Initiative adopted in July 2001 and MINDFUL of the determination of Africans to eradicate poverty and to commit their countries, individually and collectively, to sustainable growth and development, while taking an active part in the world economy and in decision? making fora, COGNIZANT of the enormous capacity needs in the public and private sectors, as well as in the civil society of our respective countries, which constitutes a major impediment to participatory development,