Somalia has been elected as one of the ten members of the African Union Peace and Security Council (PSC) for the 2026–2028 term.
Other countries which will serve a two- year term of the council include DRC, Gabon, Uganda, Morocco, Lesotho, South Africa, Benin, Cote d’Ivoire and Sierra Leone.
This marks the first time Somalia will sit on the continent’s premier peace and security organ, and the results of the vote at the ongoing 39th AU summit grant the Horn of Africa country direct access in AU systems to shape decisions on conflict prevention, mediation and regional stability.
It signals growing diplomatic traction after years of internal security challenges. in Somalia
The Council election contest was reshaped after Kenya and Rwanda withdrew their candidacies days before foreign ministers convened in Addis Ababa, narrowing what had been one of the summit’s most competitive regional races.
The election, held during the 48th Ordinary Session of the AU Executive Council in Addis Ababa, puts Mogadishu on Africa’s premier security body just weeks after Somalia’s January presidency of the UN Security Council concluded.
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud hailed the outcome as a “historic victory” and a sign of the country’s recovery.
“We previously became a member of the UN Security Council, and today we sit on the African Peace and Security Council,” Mohamud said in a statement from Mogadishu.
“The confidence and support Somalia has received… is evidence of the positive change taking place in the country.”
For much of the 21st century, Somalia served mainly as a primary recipient of AU security interventions, rather than a country shaping the bloc’s policies. The new seat marks a dramatic turnaround.
MG/as/APA