Accordingly, the resourcing of the five-year work plan and strengthening of the secretariat becomes top priority in the implementation phase. In this connection, the recommendation is that the pan-African organizations step up a sustainable funding mechanism for the Africa Programme. Until the secretariat raises the funds necessary from development partners and the donor community, it will take interim measures to avoid any slackening of the Africa Programme. In this connection, these are the recommendations:  Pan-African organizations step up funding support so that the Africa Programme secretariat maintains the minimum number of qualified professionals.  Countries such as South Africa may be able to provide short-term secondment of their staff to the secretariat.  The focus of the African Symposium on Statistical Development since 2010 had been on improving the civil registration and vital statistics process in Africa. The series ended with the eleventh symposium, held in November 2015. Given the high visibility that the Symposium provided to the continental civil registration and vital statistics initiative among national, regional and international stakeholders, it would be beneficial if all future symposia could dedicate one full day for civil registration and vital statistics. Lastly, it is critical that the strategy and action plan be implemented, taking into consideration the priorities and time schedules of the identified actions to encourage more participation of stakeholders and development partners and minimize the risk of delays in any of the implementation phases or the risk of postponement of some of the activities. It is imperative that the Africa Programme secretariat be well staffed and resourced to manage and coordinate the activities contained in the action plan (see figure II). 33