South African president takes over rotating chair of AU

ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday took over the rotating African Union (AU) chair at the opening of the 33rd AU summit of heads of state and government at the AU headquarters in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa.

The 33rd AU summit is being held in the East African country under the theme of the year, "Silencing the Guns: Creating Conducive Conditions for Africa's Development."

Ramaphosa has taken over the one-year term chairmanship from the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

In his acceptance speech, Ramaphosa said he would dedicate efforts to enhancing the progress on Africa's priorities for development and prosperity, with focus on deepening collaboration among member states.