The Department works to achieve the following objectives:

• Developing the prospects of Afro-Arab cooperation in the political sphere in terms of mutual support for the issues of each side and coordination of positions in international forums, in addition to developing cooperation in economic, commercial, investment, agricultural, cultural, environmental, energy, and other spheres.
• Implementing the resolutions and recommendations by League of Arab States councils and agencies and disseminating their implementation results.
• Developing relations with the African Union and its institutions to support Afro-Arab relations.
• Preparing plans, projects, and programmes for pushing the process of Afro-Arab cooperation and working to implement them.
• This cooperation and coordination shall be implemented through continuous consultation with the concerned African and international organisations, communities, banks, and funds. On top of these organisations is the African Union Commission.
• Monitoring international political attitudes and positions, as well as the positions of African States in developing Afro-Arab relations, drawing up studies and reports on these positions, and proposing ways to support relations of cooperation and friendship.
• Developing League of Arab States' relations with African organisations and unions, such as the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the Union of African Parliaments, and African economic communities.
• Following up on Israeli activity in Africa and confronting its attempts to obtain observer status in the African Union.
  

The Department of Africa and Afro-Arab Cooperation undertakes several tasks that can be summarised as follows:

First: Afro-Arab cooperation:

The department is committed to executing and following up on decisions from Arab and African summits across various domains in collaboration with the technical divisions of the General Secretariat and African Union Commission. Furthermore, it evaluates and revises the Arab-African Partnership Strategic Plan in priority areas relevant to both regions, which are:

Political and security cooperation.

Economic, financial and commercial cooperation.

Cooperation in the fields of agriculture and food security.

Social and cultural cooperation.

Partnership areas shall be implemented through the following implementation and follow-up mechanisms:

1.     Afro-Arab Summit: It is the supreme authority to set policies and make decisions, which adopt the strategy and short-term action plans, evaluate the progress made in their implementation, and guide future action. It is held every three years in rotation in the African Arab States. The Department shall perform the duties of the Arab coordinator for the work of the Afro-Arab Summit.

2.     Council of Foreign Ministers of African and Arab States: It is the political arm of the Afro-Arab Summit and is composed of foreign ministers. The council shall convene every 18 months alternately in African and Arab states, review action plans, receive reports of subsidiary bodies, and approve the action programmes and working documents of the Summit.

3.     The Joint Afro-Arab Ministerial Meeting on Agricultural Development and Food Security: It is held every two years alternately between the two regions. The facilitation unit is considered the executive arm concerned with implementing the Joint Afro-Arab Action Plan on Agricultural Development and Food Security.

4.     Coordination Committee of Africa-Arab Partnership: This Committee is considered one of the actual implementations and follow-up mechanisms, as it is the executive arm of the Summit and undertakes the implementation, follow-up, and monitoring of the Partnership Strategy and action plans among the Summit meetings. It also receives periodic reports from the African Union Commission and the Secretariat-General. It consists of a troika that includes a representative of the current president of the Arab Summit and two representatives of the former and incoming presidents of the Afro-Arab Summit, representatives of both the Chairperson of the African Union Commission and the League of Arab States Secretary-General and representative of the current Chairperson of the African Union. The heads of relevant African and Arab institutions may attend the meetings as observers. The Committee shall convene once a year at the ministerial level and every six months at the senior officials level, alternately in the two regions.

Meetings of Afro-Arab Cooperation: Joint cooperation meetings between the African Union Commission and the League of Arab States Secretariat-General are to be held annually to consult on issues related to Afro-Arab cooperation politically, economically, and socially.

5.     Afro-Arab Economic Forum: The forum shall be held on the sidelines of the Afro-Arab Summit every three years, alternately between the two regions, and brings together government officials, experts, academics, the private sector, civil society organisations and commerce chambers of both sides to provide academic support for the process of implementing and following up on the Strategy and action plans.

6.     Afro-Arab Trade Fair: It is held every two years alternately between the two regions to contribute to strengthening economic cooperation between Arab and African states and identifying investment opportunities available from the two regions to promote joint Afro-Arab investment and create opportunities for investment exchange between the two sides.

7.     Afro-Arab Cultural Institute - Bamako: The mission of the Afro-Arab Cultural Institute is to develop Afro-Arab relations and organise programmes, forums, conferences and festivals that will bring together cultural experts, writers and thinkers to promote and spread cultural exchange between the two parties.

African Summit: The Department participates in representing the Secretariat-General in the work of the African Union Conference that is to be held twice annually.

Second: Confronting Israeli attempts to penetrate Africa:
The Department is following up on the issue of confronting the Israeli efforts to penetrate the African states and consolidate its relations with them, as well as Israeli attempts to join the African Union and hold senior posts in the United Nations.

The Department's work in this regard is based on intensifying joint Arab efforts, coordinating its attitudes towards strengthening diplomatic and popular relations with African states to prevent Israeli penetration into them, recalling the firm position of the African Union in support of the Palestinian cause, and working to activate the mechanisms of Arab economic and development support and cooperation for African states against the background of the Kuwait Summit (2013) and its achievements.

Indeed, the Secretariat-General stopped the Israeli delegation's attempt to participate in the African Peace and Security Council Summit and the opening session of the African Summit held on 25-26.06.2014 in Malabo, the capital of Equatorial Guinea. It explained that this action is not accepted by the League of Arab States and its Member States, as it sets a negative precedent in relations between the League of Arab States and the African Union, contradicts the African position in support of the Palestinian cause, and sends a negative message to the fourth Afro-Arab summit to be held in Equatorial Guinea in 2016.

Third: Advancing the spread of the Arabic language in Chad

The department participated in a mission dispatched to Chad to address its concerns regarding the promotion of Arabic language dissemination, in line with League Council Resolution 7604 dated 3/6/2013. It engaged in multiple meetings, including the Arab Conference's Ministerial Meeting on Education held in Tunis in May 2014. In addition, a provision is allocated to promoting the spread of the Arabic language in Chad in the Department of Africa and Arab-African Cooperation's budget.