African Union: Unavoidable Issues Awaiting the New Chairperson

Published on 17th July 2012

Dr. Nkosazana Dlammi-Zuma, New AU Commission head.            Photo courtesy.
Dr. Nkosazana Dlammi-Zuma, the powerful home affairs minister of South Africa made history in winning the election to the chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission. Dr. Nkosazana became the first woman to be elected the chairperson of the AU commission. She also became the first person from the southern region of the continent to lead the premier political continental organization in Africa since the founding of the Organization of African Unity 49 years ago, the predecessor organization to AU. In addition, she is the first leader of a major African organization to have come up the ranks as a freedom fighter. Furthermore, Dr. Nkosazana comes to the chairperson position with firsthand experience of working professionally in the West, outside of an African government. As a former health and foreign minister, she has firsthand experience of issues shaping global health, economic and other development issues. 

The new chairperson faces a gargantuan task of turning the AU Commission into a dynamic, forward looking continental organization. The AU Commission had a torrid 2011 due to uninspiring performances during the political impasse in Cote d' Ivoire and the crisis in Libya. The African Union had negligible impact on the resolution of both problems. 

Multiple critical issues await the attention of the new chairperson.

First, move quickly on healing the continental divide from the protracted struggle for the chairperson position. The new chairperson should move quickly to close ranks with African nations that supported Dr. Jean Ping, the outgoing chairperson during the January and July 2012 rounds of voting.  In particular, Nigeria, Ethiopia and mostly francophone African countries that supported Dr. Ping should be part of the broad-based continental support for the new chairperson during the next four years. 

Second, urgently transform the day-to-day operations of the AU commission. Africa faces unprecedented challenges from ongoing global economic crisis, climate change, the issue of global commons and global public goods and the emergence of powerful middle income countries of which South Africa is so far the only certified member from the continent. Africa has to act on regional integration issues, trade within the continent, freer movement of people, goods and services as well as strengthening regional economic communities. The AU Commission is Africa’s first line of interaction and decisive action in the global stage. The Commission must transition from a first order organization primarily focused on putting structures and procedures in place to an entity known for its proactive, dynamic, solution-oriented and forward looking representation of Africa’s interests and priorities.

The $US200 million Chinese donated and built conference center is a landmark edifice. However, AU leadership and staff need to work with sophisticated information and communication technology to drive the quest for evidence-based programming,   including monitoring and evaluation of continental resolutions and platforms in member states. The Commission needs a deep in-house bench of technocrats with subject matter expertise on various continental issues. It also needs to revamp its day-to-day relationship with member states, especially in the implementation of early-warning systems on conflicts and the conduct of national elections. Ultimately, the AU Commission should become a knowledge-based institution on Africa’s political and development issues in the 21st century. Policy makers, researchers and advocates in Africa and around the world should rely on AU Commission in the near future for guidance on issues critical to Africa’s renaissance.

Third, address the perennial financial woes of the AU Commission. Since it became operational eight years ago, the AU Commission struggle with insufficient financial resources is well known. The new chairperson should come up with a new financial strategy for the AU Commission that emphasizes prudence, priority-based budgeting and long term financial commitment. South Africa, Angola and Botswana as staunch supporters of change in the Commission leadership should provide the new chairperson with sufficient funds to transform the AU Commission. Richer African countries such as Nigeria, Libya, Algeria and Kenya should also support the AU Commission with additional resources. The road to the financial viability of the AU Commission is unlikely to lie beyond continental borders. The next AU Summit should be devoted to the long term financial viability of the AU Commission with a firm understanding that financial contributions from the 54 member nations are unlikely to be sufficient, especially since 35 African countries are among the poorest nations in the world.  In addition, creative financial viability of the AU Commission will likely include a substantial role for the African Development Bank and possibly unrestricted voluntary contributions from the organized private sector in the continent.

Fourth, establish the Africa Standby Military Force as soon as possible. The inability to establish such a force by 2010 as earlier promised, even on a scaled down basis, remains one of the most enduring blows to the outgoing AU Commission leadership. The lack of a standby force cost Africa and the AU Commission dearly in Cote d’Ivoire and Libya. It is also likely to prove costly in Mali that is now facing down Islamic insurgents active in the northern part of the country. The imbroglio in the DRC and the tense situation between Sudan and South Sudan are additional recent examples.  It is important to note that the envisaged standby force will face serious financial, logistics and operational challenges. However, the much vaunted Africa renaissance in the 21st century is unlikely to materialize unless the continent gets a solid handle on conflict deterrence and resolution issues. Negotiating cost sharing with the United Nations peace keeping operations may give the standby force financial and logistics breathing room during the early years.  By helping to establish an African Standby force, the new chairperson is laying an immovable marker regarding Africa’s determination to deal decisively with conflicts, sending a clear, unambiguous signal to all potential trouble makers. 

Fifth, revamp the AU Commission Africa Diaspora strategy. As I had noted in the past in this medium, the relationship between Africa and its Diaspora is likely to become indispensable in the coming years. The May 2012 AU Africa Diaspora conference in South Africa is a step in the right direction. However, the new chairperson should drive the process of galvanizing technical, bilateral, entrepreneurial and cultural relationships with the Diaspora. To tighten policy and program coordination at the highest levels, the new chairperson should push for a new position of AU Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs. The Commissioner will also be critical in coordinating emerging Diaspora programs and initiatives of bilateral and multilateral agencies as well working closely with nascent business networks guiding entrepreneurial partnerships. In addition, AU Commission Diplomatic missions should receive financial, technical and logistic support to implement robust Diaspora programs.

Sixth, reposition NEPAD as the focal point of AU partnership with external bilateral and multilateral agencies. The integration of NEPAD into AU which I strongly supported appears to slow down the momentum that NEPAD had in its earliest days. Luckily, the new chairperson is very familiar with NEPAD from her days as foreign minister. I remember that in 2003, Professor Wiseman Nkhulu, the then Chief Economic Adviser to President Thabo Mbeki and then coordinator of NEPAD had taken I and three other members of a visiting delegation from Constituency for Africa, Washington, DC to meet the new chairperson in her ministerial quarters in Pretoria. The new chairperson should reposition NEPAD as the development implementation arm of the AU Commission, with a principal focus on infrastructure initiatives. She should also look into how to strengthen the role of NEPAD chief executive to reassure potential partners that they are dealing with an individual with sufficient authority to implement agreements.

Finally, the toughest test ahead for the new chairperson is to make the work of the AU Commission relevant to the daily lives of Africans. An enduring criticism of the concept of the African Union is the lack of direct interface with ordinary men and women in Africa.  No official of the AU Commission is directly elected by an African.  As the voice of Africa, the new chairperson in the interim should take the work of the AU commission and NEPAD on the road, directly to Africans in the form of town hall meetings to discuss and obtain feedback. She should also organize stakeholder consultative sessions, especially with advocacy organizations, trade unions, student groups, professional organizations and the media.  In addition, the Commission should conduct surveys and opinion polls to gauge the feeling on African streets regarding specific issues of continental importance. In the longer term, members of the African Parliament should be elected by direct vote to serve as representatives of the people. 

Dr. Nkosazana Dlammi-Zuma made history as the new chairperson of the African Union Commission. She can solidify her place in the history of the continent by transforming the African Union Commission into a world class organization actively engaged in tireless efforts to meet the needs and priorities of Africans in the North, South, East and West of the continent. 

By Dr. Chinua Akukwe

The author is former Chair of the Technical Advisory Board, Africa Center for Health and Human Security, George Washington University, Washington, DC. He has written extensively on health and development issues, including four books. He can be reached at [email protected].


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