APA – Kigali (Rwanda) As Rwandan President Paul Kagame presents his final report on African Union Reforms on the sidelines of the 37th AU Summit currently taking place in Addis Ababa attention has been drawn to how far the body has changed since its founding 22 years ago.
The African Union replaced its predecessor known as the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) which was inaugurated in 1963 to herald the then new dawn of independence for its founding members and others which would follow soon after.
However, since 2016, African leaders had agreed in principle to reform the continental body as a move to make it more effective as a player on the continent’s future and render it more financially sound and independent.
According to Rwandan President Paul Kagame who is stepping down as the chair of the AU Reforms Advisory Committee, an assessment conducted shows that a great deal has so far been accomplished.
Kagame praised the African Union Commission, under the leadership of chairperson Moussa Faki, as well as the Reform Unit, led by Professor Pierre Moukoko, for their tireless work over the past eight years when he was steering the affairs of the committee.
“Among the achievements we can point to is the revitalisation of the Peace Fund. Almost $400 million has been mobilised. As a direct result, the United Nations Security Council recently decided to finance three-quarters of African Union peace operations for the first time,” he said.
According to him, this was only possible because the African Union today is more fit-for-purpose than it used to be. He said the continental body was getting better at defining its common interests and advocating for them.
“We still have a long way to go, for the African Union to be as strong as we want and need it to be,” Kagame said while stressing that this is why the reform journey must not end here. I believe the time has come, with your permission, to conclude the mandate entrusted to me in 2016,” he said.
Kagame stressed that the AU will need continued strong support from heads of state in implementing the institutional reform and preventing backsliding into inefficient ways of conducting its business.
“I have already raised with the Chairperson of the Commission the fact that we need another head of state who has the understanding and the backing of their peers, the heads of state of our continent. I have already suggested to the Chairperson a name but we have not yet contacted the person we have in mind to be able to continue this task of the reforms and their implementation,” he said.
So far the Commission has introduced a draft decision on the realignment of the African Union institutions to deliver against key priorities with a continental scope, and this merits support, according to Kagame.
“We know where we want to be as a continent. Now, what seems often to be missing is the political will to implement what we ourselves have decided,” Kagame said as he bade farewell as the chairperson of the AU Reforms Advisory Committee.
Kenyan President William Ruto has succeeded Kagame as the new chair of the committee at the ongoing Assembly of the African Union heads of State and Government in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
CU/as/APA