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ach May 25 is a special day for the governments and people of the African continent. It represents the day Africa established the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in 1963.

Africa Day offers us an opportunity to celebrate Africa'€™s achievements and to reflect on its challenges.

This year'€™s celebration is very unique to all Africans and especially to those here in Indonesia as it comes on the heels of the highly successful commemoration of solidarity, cooperation and friendship with the Asian region that was built 60 years ago. Leaders from the two regions met and explored ways to strengthen relations between the two regions, which were cemented by the Bandung spirit of 1955.

For me, as the ambassador of Zimbabwe, this year'€™s Africa Day is unique as it is held at a time that Zimbabwe President Robert Gabriel Mugabe is chairing the continental body. Today, Zimbabwe joins other nations on the African continent in celebrating Africa Day.

This year'€™s theme is very dear to my heart as a female ambassador: '€œWomen Empowerment and Development toward the Africa Agenda 2063'€. The African Union (AU) is committed to gender equality and to the empowerment of women.

In recent years, there has been excitement with Africa'€™s economic growth, which saw it be referred to as the '€œfuture frontier'€ of economic development. The year 2014 saw Africa'€™s economy grow by roughly 4 percent, creating one of the largest uninterrupted positive economic expansions in African history. Africa has the fastest growing and youngest population in the world and its middle class is growing with per capita at 5 percent over the last 10 years.

The AU'€™s challenge is to spread the benefits of these developments to the women and girls who suffer poverty, disease and are often the targets of sexual violence and abuse. Agenda 2063 therefore addresses the need for better access for women to education, work and health care.

Despite the challenges African women face, the continent leads the world in females in leadership positions. It boasts female head of states, government ministers and representation in parliaments. The continent has one of the highest rates of female entrepreneurship.

This year, the African diplomatic community in Indonesia did not have any special event to commemorate the 52nd anniversary of the AU as in previous years. This does not take away the importance and significance of the AU'€™s establishment in 1963.

Alice Mageza
Dean of The African Ambassadors
and Zimbabwe Ambassador to Indonesia
Jakarta