Zimbabwean diplomat Hilda Suka-Mafudze has been appointed the new African Union ambassador to the United States, according to media reports monitored here on Wednesday.
According to the privately owned NewsDay, Suka-Mafudze, who is currently Zimbabwe’s ambassador to Malawi, replaces another Zimbabwean-born diplomat Arikana Chihombori-Quao as Africa’s top envoy in Washington.
The paper said AU ambassador-designate is currently receiving briefings at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and is expected to take up her post in Washington next week.
“I am humbled and appreciative to be able to represent my continent in the US,” Suka-Mafudze is quoted as saying.
She pledged to use her posting to “contribute better to the Africa we want.”
The envoy said she would push for support for the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, one of the flagship projects of Agenda 2063 that “represents a critical step in the journey of Africa”.
JN/APA