By Jean Narcisse Djaha
The African Union is facing a brain death at multiple levels in the organization. In this article, Jean Narcisse Djaha, Founding President and Chairman of the African Council on Foreign Relations, explains why the African Union will disappear if nothing is done.
Great promises at the birth of the African Union
The birth of the African Union, at the beginning of the third millennium, raised the hopes of African peoples throughout Africa, the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The African Union brings together all 55 African countries. The objectives of the African Union are quite simple. They reflect the four summits of Heads of State and Government that led to the official launch of the African Union. These were the Syrte (Libya) conference in 1999, the Lome Summit in 2000, the Lusaka (Angola) Summit in 2001, and the Durban Summit in 2002 in South Africa. The official launch took place under the aegis of President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa.
Thabo Mbeki, the first president of the African Union, described the birth of the AU as “a giant step forward for the African continent, a moment of hope for the continent and its peoples”. For Mbeki, the time had come for the African continent to reclaim its place in global governance. As for President Omar Bongo, he described the creation of the AU as “a great victory for Africa”. The Togolese president Eyadema, in turn, asserted that the African Union represented an important milestone in the fulfillment of Africa’s destiny, as it gave the continent “the means to count and weigh in international affairs and to become an emerging force as the millennium begins and the world becomes more competitive.
Thabo Mbeki, the first president of the African Union, described the birth of the AU as “a giant step forward for the African continent, a moment of hope for the continent and its peoples”. For Mbeki, the time had come for the African continent to reclaim its place in global governance. As for President Omar Bongo, he described the creation of the AU as “a great victory for Africa”. The Togolese president Eyadema, in turn, asserted that the African Union represented an important milestone in the fulfillment of Africa’s destiny, as it gave the continent “the means to count and weigh in international affairs and to become an emerging force as the millennium begins and the world becomes more competitive.
The Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi added: “Africa for Africans; you are free. You are the masters of your continent, the masters of your land. Everywhere, the land of Africa is for Africans. You are the masters, you are free. You are strong. Vive l’Afrique, l’AU en avant”.
These various declarations expressed hope for the construction of African Unity, based on a call for peace, stability, and good governance to secure the future. Among the objectives of the African Union are to:
- accelerate the political and socio-economic integration of the continent;
- promote and defend African common positions on issues of interest to the continent and its peoples;
- achieve peace and security in Africa; and
- promote democratic institutions, good governance and human rights.
As a coordination vehicle for political actions in Africa, the African Union has not ensured greater coherence in defending Africa’s best interests in the global economy. Its mission to accelerate the process of integration on the continent while addressing multifaceted social, economic, and political problems has not always met with success. The African Union has not kept its promises and is still failing its member states.
Broken Promises of the African Union.
The African Union (AU) is not living up to expectations – and member states are partly to blame, according to AU Commission (AUC) Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat.
First, Africa has not experienced peace. The AU Assembly’s silencing the gun project has never begun and perhaps will never start. Problems of political coups are on the rise in West Africa. The forces of globalization still wage economic war against African economies in every part of the continent. The increasing struggles for democracy, according to the West, have led to new types of resistance to governance at all levels of the political economy and economic governance. The continental integration project has become more complex than it was several decades ago. Global powers’ strategic, leadership, and economic interests have greatly spoken, especially the rising global great power competition that is intensifying across the continent. political leadership failures continue to engulf the African continent.
Second, loss of political trust and economic development constitute two of the AU’s weakest points. For instance, in the New Partnership for Africa’s Development and its five core principles, some progress has been made, and faces big challenges to realize its aims to the fullest. The Partnership has done little to solve the poor governance issue in Africa. Most of its funding received from the African Union originates from international development partners, including the European Union and the United States of America.
Third, the African Union similar to other continental multilateral organizations has been embroiled in a trust dilemma for a very long time. Younger populations have low levels of trust in the institution. This low level of trust has led to a significant loss of credibility that is growing in every country, city, county, and hamlet across the continent. The double standard in the treatment of political and economic challenges remains the biggest driver of the loss of trust in the African Union.
A Double Standard is Taking Center Stage
A further cause for concern for the African Union’s programmed dislocation is the ongoing silence when member states struggle for their liberation and autonomy. As insecurity enters its new phase in the Sahel region, there has been total mutism and a call to support these nations. Outlook on the African Union’s weaknesses has increased because of its incapacity to provide political, economic, and material support that accelerates regional cooperation. Currently, pan-continental body, which has 55 member countries, has not shown real support for the millions of African citizens in Africa and globally.
Despite their efforts to lead a people-oriented body, leaders at the African Union have not risen above their mandate, a problematic concern that poses a serious threat to the institution’s future. Despite their positive agenda, foreign interests have risen above the interests of millions of African young people in popularity and support.
African Union’s continuous application of a double standard policy in Africa is a great blow to its ideals and objectives, consolidating the judgment of millions of Africans that this institution is a tool of the liberal international order and other greater powers to expand their influence right here.
A Playground for Great Power Competition
Many scholars and experts have now concluded that the African Union has a multi-global power economic interest protection institution. The African Union is in the midst of a shift in pan-African focus from defending Africa’s economic and political interests to completely aligning with the interests of countries such as America, China, France, the United Kingdom, and Saudi Arabia on the African continent. Africa, a constellation of 55 countries once the heart of political crises, is becoming the center of gravity for great powers in the international system. Africa, once forgotten, is summoning more attention from a variety of actors, seeking to expand their economic and political blueprints. In other words, several global powers are competing for greater influence and domination in Africa.
A RAND Corporation 2023’s Great-Power Competition and Conflict in Africa report states that:
- Conflicts with great-power involvement in Africa are likely to involve distinct challenges of deconfliction, harassment, and behind-the-scenes political contests.
- Great-power competition in Africa may not be a zero-sum game.
- Potential for competition in Africa is focused on the largest economies, countries with natural resources, and strategically important locations.
Africa, a location for great-power competition during the Cold War, is yet again summoning more interest from the United States’ great-power competitors — China and Russia. In 2024, there are other global powers — Saudi Arabia, India, Japan, Russia, the European Union, Turkey, and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf. This creates a greater political and economic challenge as the African Union engages with all these players in an effort to exist.
Moving Forward
First, it is recognizable that the African Union is facing a serious brain death. It is too early to announce the death of the African Union. It is still possible for the African Union to achieve its core objectives. To realize the ambitious Agenda 2063, the AU must explore how it can leverage the ongoing great power competition era diplomatically and politically to catalyze the realization of its own economic development goals, secure the necessary funding required to implement the African Continental Free Trade Area project, forge win-win partnerships that benefits the people, and build a strong political trust among young people across the continent.
Second, funding for African Union projects must come from member states to avoid being imposed on economic and political agendas by external donors. The African Union must address the funding dilemma as it matures to become a powerful political and economic force for all 55 African nations.
Third, the African Union is at a crossroads when it comes to delivering on its core ideals, goals, and promises. In the lead-up to the African continent’s future, leaders at the African Union must continue to discuss real policies that need to be at the top of development agendas. They must emphasize an Africa-focused development agenda. This agenda needs to dive into the AU’s commitments since its founding, drawing deep emphasis on the continent’s high priorities in terms of economic development, continental trade acceleration, and international cooperation.
According to George Authur Blair, he who controls the present controls the future. He who controls the future controls the present.
Author The Author
Jean Narcisse Djaha, PhD is the Founding President and Chairman of the African Council on Foreign Relations. He is guided by Romans 8:30” And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified”.
