On Africa Day, we recognize the people and promise of Africa. The continent has just experienced a decade of rapid economic growth – a stark contrast to the stagnation and reversals of previous years. Many of the world's fastest-growing economies are in sub-Saharan Africa, and attractive investment opportunities are proliferating. Africa has also made gains in consolidating democracy. The United Nations will continue to support the African people's efforts to realize their right to choose their own leaders and ensure that elections are a route to peace, not violence.
值此非洲日，我们赞美非洲人民，看好非洲的前途。非洲大陆刚刚经历了经济快速增长的十年——这与此前多年的停滞和倒退形成了鲜明对照。世界许多增长最快的经济体在撒哈拉以南非洲地区，有吸引力的投资机会不断涌现。非洲还努力巩固民主制度，并取得了成果。联合国将一如既往，支持非洲人民争取选择自己领导人的权利，并确保选举成为通往和平而非暴力的道路。

I am marking Africa Day this year with a visit to the continent aimed at mobilizing global support for reducing child and maternal mortality rates. Progress in this area has been slower than it is on all the other Millennium Development Goals, despite proven policies, practices and technologies. Our new Global Strategy for Women's and Children's Health aims to save millions of lives by bringing together all relevant partners and scaling up what works, including many home-grown African strategies for success.
今年，我庆祝非洲日的活动是访问非洲大陆，借以调动全球的支持，降低儿童和孕产妇死亡率。虽然实施了行之有效的政策、做法和技术，这个领域的进展却不及在所有其他千年发展目标方面的进展。我们已经制定新的全球妇女和儿童健康战略，我们的宗旨是，调动所有相关合作伙伴，加强实施行之有效措施的力度，包括加强实施许多非洲本土成功战略的力度，挽救千百万人的生命。

The theme of this year's observance – “Accelerating Youth Empowerment for Sustainable Development” – highlights one of Africa's greatest untapped resources: its young people. Africa is the world's youngest continent; 70 per cent of the population is under the age of 30. Despite advances in education and economic growth, progress remains fragile, inequalities are widespread and young Africans face major difficulties in finding decent jobs and participating in decision-making. In North Africa earlier this year, the lack of such freedoms was among the factors that led young people to take to the streets demanding change and fulfillment of their legitimate aspirations for better lives. Empowering youth is essential for sustainable economic growth and sustainable management of the earth's ecosystems and resources; the clear challenge for many countries now is to pay just as much attention to sustainable political progress.
今年纪念活动的主题是 “加速赋予青年权能，促进可持续发展”，这个主题强调的是非洲最大的未发掘资源之一：非洲青年。非洲是世界最年轻的大陆，30岁以下居民占其人口的70%。虽然在教育和经济增长方面取得了进步，但进步仍然很脆弱，不平等现象很普遍，非洲青年很难找到体面的工作，很难参与决策。今年早些时候，除其他因素外，缺乏这些自由也是导致北非青年走上街头、要求改革和实现改善生活合理愿望的因素。赋予青年权能对于促进可持续经济增长和促进以可持续方式管理地球生态系统和资源至关重要；对于许多国家而言，现在的明确挑战是，必须同样重视可持续政治进步。

As Africans strive to overcome threats to peace and development, the continent will continue to need strong and dedicated support from all its partners. On Africa Day, let us reaffirm our commitment to work in partnership with Africans of all ages to realize their potential by building an environment conducive to prosperity, democracy and peace.
在非洲人民努力克服和平与发展所面临威胁过程中，非洲大陆仍将需要所有伙伴给予强大和专款支持。值此非洲日，我们愿重申，我们致力于与所有年龄的非洲人合作，努力建设可促进繁荣、民主与和平的有利环境，发掘他们的潜力。