The 38th African Union summit, running from 15-16 February, remains in process in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with the leaders from 55 member states of the continent in attendance. Earlier in the same month, the summit was hosted right in the middle of escalated conflicts, humanitarian crises, and global challenges, with such pressing challenges dominating discussions as the war in Sudan, crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and cuts to US humanitarian aid.
At this particular summit, the vote to vote for a new chairperson for the AU is among other important issues to be addressed and discussed. The future chairperson will represent about 1.5 billion Africans within the given time of increased uncertainty. The three names to stand in the election as representations for the chairpersonship include: Djibouti’s Foreign Minister Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, Kenya’s Raila Odinga, and Madagascar’s former Economy Minister Richard Randriamandrato. The new chair is going to fill in the position of Moussa Faki Mahamat from Chad, who has reached the maximum two-term limit.
This is however extremely significant because there is an indication that a dynamic, ambitious leader could rejuvenate the councils of the AU in addressing much of the continent’s crises, stressed Liesl Louw-Vaudran, senior advisor at the International Crisis Group. Nonetheless, the AU operates amid new challenges both internally and externally, where often member states prioritize narrow national interests rather than collective solutions for solving the crisis.
The summit agenda is largely dominated by various conflicts and humanitarian emergencies. The connection between the fall of Goma in eastern DRC is eminently covered, while the crisis with the devastating war in Sudan has been declared to be the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. Murithi Mutiga, the Africa programme director for the ICG, said that there was a need for the AU to take much more responsibility for prevention and mediation whenever conflicts arise, considering that the old-fashioned schemes for peacekeeping lay faltering.
Louw-Vaudran noted that the AU’s mediatory work is often sick in the presence of cleavages between the memb6Ir states result is weak and compromised resolutions. She called for more robust approaches to conflict resolution, given that in very complex crises like Sudan, external actors like the U.S., Saudi Arabia, and Egypt have taken the lead in mediation efforts.
Apart from conflict, the summit also debates climate change, while it is more evident in the ICG report that it makes already fragile situations across the continent even worse. The AU is currently developing an African common position on climate, peace, and security, a call to increase financing to adaptation while warning of the link between climate change and conflict.
The summit also revives calls for accountability for colonial-era abuses and the transatlantic slave trade. Several nations in Africa are pushing for acknowledgement and reparations for injustices of the past, which reflects the growing demand for reparations and accountability on the global stage.
Huge challenges are inherent in the carrying out of the AU Summit, but so are opportunities for transformative leadership and collective action. The election of a new chairperson, together with renewed efforts towards ameliorating conflict and addressing climate change issues as well as receiving reparations for historical injustices, may prove to be a turning point for the continent. Success would, however, depend on the AU’s ability to unite its member states, engage with global partners, and effectively present real solutions to pressing issues on the continent.
