AU Monitor Special: In Preparation for the AU Summit

Thu Nov 29 06:41:44 GMT 2007

In Preparation for the AU Summit

In response to the overwhelming inquiries from our subscribers for  
more information on the themes, potential advocacy avenues and  
logistical details for the upcoming AU summit in Addis Ababa, the AU  
Monitor has put together a short summary with relevant information.

The African Union summit will be held in Addis Ababa in January  
2008.  The summit will include the Permanent Representatives  
Committee (PRC) meeting from January 25-26, the Executive Council  
(EC) meeting from January 28-29 and the Assembly of Heads of States  
and Governments from January 31 to February 2.  It is customary that  
civil society forums, debates and panels be held in advance of the  
PRC – these are expected to be held between January 20 and 25.  If  
your organisation is planning a pre-summit event, please send details  
to hakima at fahamu.org for inclusion in the AU Monitor calendar and  
newsletter.

Issue Areas for January Summit

At this January’s summit, three issues are likely to dominate  
attention and discussion:

1.    Election of Chairperson to the African Union

His Excellency President Oumar Alpha Konare has reached the end of  
his term as Chairperson of the African Union Commission.  Elections  
for a new chairperson are due to take place, along with the election  
of Commissioners, at the January summit.  The final list of  
candidates for chairperson and commissioners is available at the AU  
Monitor.

Candidates for the position of Chairperson of the African Union  
include two women, Mrs. Antoinette Batumubwira of Burundi and Mrs.  
Inonge Mbikusita-Lewanika of Zambia, as well as four men, Mr. Abdulai  
Osman Conteh of Sierra Leone, Mr. Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini of  
Swaziland, Mr. Jean Ping of Gabon and Mr. Cassam Uteem of Mauritius.

What can you do?

If you have a candidate in your country or region, try to contact him/ 
her and find out what he/she plans for their term at the African  
Union Commission, how they hope to strengthen the work of the  
Commission and what they see as the role and potential for civil  
society and citizen engagement.  Write an article or conduct an  
interview based on these responses from the candidates that will  
inform others.  Please share any such information through the AU  
Monitor.  The more we are able to hear the platform upon which each  
candidate is running, the more able we will be as the people of  
Africa to hold him/her accountable to those commitments once they are  
elected to the Commission.

2.    African Union Audit Review

At the last summit in Accra, Ghana, the AU Heads of States and  
Governments decided to establish a high-level panel to review the  
African Union.  This panel has held consultations with various  
stakeholders since September, including a civil society meeting, and  
is currently finalising its report.  In complement, the AU Monitor  
has launched a call for submissions and contributions from African  
civil society and citizens to deliver to national delegations during  
the January summit.

The significance of the Audit Review, and complimentary Peoples’  
Audit, lies not merely in the fact that it will provide an overview  
of the achievements and challenges the Union has faced and hence lay  
the foundation from which new strategy and direction will be  
established as new Commissioners are elected, but, it is hoped that  
the review will also provide a framework for future assessment and  
strengthened accountability of the Union by providing benchmarks and  
goals for performance and activity.

What can you do?

You can provide recommendations on a thematic or regional issue of  
importance to you for inclusion in the Peoples’ Audit.  Please send  
all contributions directly to hakima at fahamu.org.  You can also hold  
public consultations in your country to solicit feedback from a broad  
range of citizens on the African Union’s performance, impact on the  
lives of African peoples and future direction.  For guiding questions  
for these public consultations, please visit www.aumonitor.org/ 
comments/443/.  Please also submit any resulting reports to the AU  
Monitor for inclusion in the Peoples’ Audit and bring these reports  
to the attention of your national ministers and media so as to inform  
the national debate and policy during the January summit.

3.    Union Government

Following the adoption of the Accra Declaration in June 2007 where a  
decision on the Union Government was effectively postponed, a  
Ministerial Committee was set up to attempt to formulate actionable  
points and definitions based on the deliberations in Accra and with a  
view of creating consensus during the January summit of the AU.  This  
committee is made up of ten ministers from Egypt, Libya, Nigeria,  
Senegal, Ethiopia, Uganda, Botswana, South Africa, Cameroon and  
Gabon.  The third meeting of the Committee of Ten was held between  
the 27th and 28th of November.

The committee is mandated with the “identification of the contents of  
the Union Government concept and its relations with national  
governments; identification of domains of competence and the impact  
of the establishment of the Union Government on the sovereignty of  
member states; definition of the relationship between the Union  
Government and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs); elaboration  
of the road map together with timeframes for establishing the Union  
Government; and identification of additional sources of financing the  
activities of the Union.”

During the debate in Accra, a number of civil society organisations  
attempted to formulate a consensus position through the Continental  
Conference which resulted in the Accra CSO communiqué as well as by  
soliciting and disseminating a variety of views gathered through  
public consultations and “Peoples’ Voices” interviews.

What can you do?

Contact your national ministry, particularly if you are a citizen of  
the States included in the Committee of Ten, and ask for a clear  
statement on the national position on the Union Government.  Mobilise  
citizens and civil society in your country or region to debate and  
discuss the Union Government proposal and inform the national  
ministry of the outcome of such consultations.

We hope you will find this information useful and of interest.  The  
AU Monitor will continue to circulate news, information and analysis  
on these and other issues prior to and during the AU summit as it  
becomes available.  In particular we will endeavour to make available  
logistical information as soon as possible.

Your input and contribution is always valued.  Please do not hesitate  
to write to hakima at fahamu.org with any questions, comments or feedback.

---------------------------------------------------
Hakima Abbas
Policy Analyst, AU-Monitor
Fahamu - Networks for Social Justice
Email: hakima at fahamu.org
Skype: hakima_abbas
www.aumonitor.org
www.fahamu.org

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