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Chairperson of the African Union

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Chairperson of the
African Union
Flag of the African Union
Incumbent
Mohamed Ould Ghazouani
since 17 February 2024
StyleExcellency
AbbreviationCPAU
Appointerthe Assembly
Term lengthOne year
Constituting instrumentConstitutive Act of the AU(article 6)
PrecursorChairperson of the OAU
Formation9 July 2002
First holderThabo Mbeki
DeputyBureau
Websiteau.int/en/cpau

TheChairperson of the African Unionis the ceremonial head of theAfrican Union(AU) elected by theAssembly of Heads of State and Governmentfor a one-year term.[1]It rotates among the continent's fiveregions.

A candidate must be selected by consensus or at least two-thirds majority vote bymember states.The chairperson is expected to complete the term without interruption; hence countries with impending elections may be ineligible.[2]

The current Chairperson isMauritanianPresidentMohamed Ould Ghazouani.BothAngolaandBotswanaare seeking the post in 2025;[3]and theRepublic of the Congoin 2026.[4]

History[edit]

Main article:Chairperson of the Organisation of African Unity

In 2002, South African PresidentThabo Mbekiserved as the inaugural chairman of the union. The post rotates annually amongst the fivegeographic regionsof Africa; and over the years it has assumed the following order: East, North, Southern, Central and West Africa.

In January 2007, the assembly elected Ghanaian PresidentJohn Kufuorover Sudan's PresidentOmar al-Bashirdue to the ongoingconflict in Darfur.[2][5]Amnesty Internationalsaid it would undermine African Union's credibility andChadthreatened to withdraw its membership. Western governments also lobbied against Sudan and suggestedTanzaniaas a compromise candidate from the East African region. By consensus, Ghana was elected instead as it was celebrating its 50th independence anniversary that year.[6]

Gaddafi holding the ceremonial baton after taking over as Chair from Tanzania'sJakaya Kikwete.

In January 2010, Libyan LeaderMuammar Gaddafiunsuccessfully tried to extend his tenure by an additional year,[7]saying more time was needed in order to implement his vision for aUnited States of Africa- of which he was a strong proponent. Libya was at the time one of the largest financial supporters of the AU.Malawiwas chosen instead.[8]

The election of Equatoguinean PresidentTeodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogoin January 2011 was criticized by human rights activists as it undermined the AU's commitment to democracy.[9]

Congolese Republic PresidentDenis Sassou Nguessoand Zimbabwean PresidentRobert Mugabehave both led the AU and its predecessor, theOrganisation of African Unityduring the terms 1986–88 and 2006–07, and 1997–98 and 2015–16 respectively.[10][11]

In 2023, bothKenyaandComoroswere vying for the position.[12]Comorian PresidentAzali Assoumanithanked Kenyan PresidentWilliam Rutofor his country's withdrawal.[13]In 2024, BothAlgeriaandMoroccowere interested in the position in 2024.[14]Mauritaniawas elected instead.

Role[edit]

The incumbent chairs the biannual summit meetings of the assembly and represents the continent in various international fora such asG7,TICAD,FOCACandG20summits.[1]

They also assist in resolving crises on the continent as an elder statesman. It has been suggested that liaison offices be established to prevent friction between the incumbent and theCommission Chairpersonat the headquarters inAddis Ababa.[15]

Elder Statesman[edit]

In 2008, followingKenya'spost-election crisis,AU Chairman Jakaya Kikwete was instrumental in facilitating the opposing sides to agree to aGovernment of National Unity.[16]Kikwete also backed theinvasion of Anjouanby sending an AU Force to assist theComorosfederal government to remove renegade leaderMohamed Bacar.

List of Chairpersons[edit]

No. Portrait Name Term of office Country Region Ref.
Took office Left office
1 Thabo Mbeki 9 July 2002 10 July 2003 South Africa Southern Africa [17]
2 Joaquim Chissano 10 July 2003 11 July 2004 Mozambique Southern Africa [18]
3 Olusegun Obasanjo 11 July 2004 24 January 2006 Nigeria West Africa [19]
4 Denis Sassou Nguesso 24 January 2006 24 January 2007 Republic of Congo Central Africa [20]
5 John Kufuor 30 January 2007 31 January 2008 Ghana West Africa [2]
6 Jakaya Kikwete 31 January 2008 2 February 2009 Tanzania East Africa [21]
7 Muammar Gaddafi 2 February 2009 31 January 2010 Libya North Africa [22]
8 Bingu wa Mutharika 31 January 2010 31 January 2011 Malawi Southern Africa [23]
9 Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo 31 January 2011 29 January 2012 Equatorial Guinea Central Africa [24]
10 Yayi Boni 29 January 2012 27 January 2013 Benin West Africa [25]
11 Hailemariam Desalegn 27 January 2013 30 January 2014 Ethiopia East Africa [26]
12 Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz 30 January 2014 30 January 2015 Mauritania North Africa [27]
13 Robert Mugabe 30 January 2015 30 January 2016 Zimbabwe Southern Africa [28]
14 Idriss Déby 30 January 2016 30 January 2017 Chad Central Africa [29]
15 Alpha Condé 30 January 2017 28 January 2018 Guinea West Africa [30]
16 Paul Kagame 28 January 2018 10 February 2019 Rwanda East Africa [31]
17 Abdel Fattah el-Sisi 10 February 2019 9 February 2020 Egypt North Africa [32]
18 Cyril Ramaphosa 9 February 2020 6 February 2021 South Africa Southern Africa [33]
19 Félix Tshisekedi 6 February 2021 5 February 2022 Democratic Republic of Congo Central Africa [34]
20 Macky Sall 5 February 2022 18 February 2023 Senegal West Africa [35]
21 Azali Assoumani 18 February 2023 17 February 2024 Comoros East Africa [36]
22 Mohamed Ould Ghazouani 17 February 2024 Incumbent Mauritania North Africa [37]

Bureau[edit]

The Chairperson is assisted by a bureau of four vice chairpersons including a rapporteur.[38]

Portrait Incumbent Country Region Title
João Lourenço Angola Southern Africa First Vice Chairperson
Denis Sassou Nguesso[4] Republic of Congo Central Africa Second Vice Chairperson
Nana Akufo-Addo Ghana West Africa Third Vice Chairperson
Azali Assoumani Comoros East Africa Fourth Vice Chairperson (Rapporteur)

References[edit]

  1. ^ab"African Union Handbook"(PDF).African Union. 2014. p. 15.
  2. ^abc"President Kufuor elected Chairman of AU".ghanaweb.Accra: Ghana News Agency. 29 January 2007.Retrieved2014-01-31.
  3. ^"Luanda seeks to outmanoeuvre Botswana in race for 2025 AU presidency".Africa Intelligence. 20 October 2023. Archived fromthe originalon 2023-10-20.Retrieved10 April2024.
  4. ^ab"Sassou-Nguesso aims for AU presidency in 2026".Africa Intelligence. 6 March 2024. Archived fromthe originalon 2024-03-06.Retrieved10 April2024.
  5. ^"African Union Chooses Kufuor Over Bashir for Chairman".Yahoo! Voices. 29 January 2007. Archived fromthe originalon 2014-02-23.Retrieved2014-01-31.
  6. ^"Sudan loses AU chair over Darfur".Mail and Guardian.South Africa. 29 January 2007.Retrieved2014-01-31.
  7. ^"Gaddafi fails in bid to remain African Union chair".Addis Ababa: Reuters. 31 January 2010.Archivedfrom the original on 2014-02-02.Retrieved2014-01-31.
  8. ^"African Union row over Muammar Gaddafi's role".BBC News.28 January 2010.Retrieved31 January2014.
  9. ^"Equatorial Guinea President Named African Union Head; Rights Groups Object".Bloomberg News. 30 January 2011.Retrieved31 January2014.
  10. ^"President voted AU deputy chair".The Herald.Zimbabwe. 31 January 2014.Retrieved1 February2014.
  11. ^"Mugabe Scores A Feat, Set To Head AU at 91".radiovop. 31 January 2014. Archived fromthe originalon 3 February 2014.Retrieved1 February2014.
  12. ^"Kenyatta and Azali vie for AU vice chairmanship".Africa Intelligence.Indigo Publications. 11 February 2022. Archived fromthe originalon 2022-08-09.Retrieved30 November2022.
  13. ^"PRESS RELEASE: President Azali Assoumani of the Union of Comoros, Takes Over as the New Chairperson of the African Union (AU) for 2023".African Union. 18 February 2023.Retrieved19 February2023.
  14. ^"Algiers and Rabat battle for 2024 African Union presidency".Africa Intelligence. 19 January 2023. Archived fromthe originalon 25 January 2023.Retrieved19 February2023.
  15. ^Blunt, Elizabeth (27 March 2009)."African Union's eventful year with Gaddafi".BBC.Retrieved2 January2022.
  16. ^MUFUAYIA ACHERO DAVID (June 2015)."The role of Jakaya Kikwete in the mediation of the Kenyan Post-election conflict, 2008".
  17. ^Babarinde, Olufemi (April 2007)."The EU as a Model for the African Union: the Limits of Imitation"(PDF).miami.edu.
  18. ^"High hopes for AU Maputo Assembly".ANC Today. 4–10 July 2003. Archived fromthe originalon 9 October 2013.Retrieved30 January2014.
  19. ^"Obasanjo Elected AU Chairman".Addis Ababa: Vanguard. 12 July 2004.Retrieved2014-01-31.
  20. ^"CONGO: Profile of Denis Sassou-Nguesso, new AU head".Brazzaville: IRIN. 24 January 2006.Retrieved2014-01-31.
  21. ^Appel, Michael (2 February 2008)."Kikwete takes over AU Chair".Pambazuka News. Archived fromthe originalon 1 February 2014.Retrieved2014-01-31.
  22. ^"Gaddafi vows to push Africa unity".BBC News.2 February 2009.Retrieved2014-01-31.
  23. ^"Malawi president takes over as AU president".AFP. 31 January 2010. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-12-30.Retrieved2014-01-31.
  24. ^Hennig, Rainer Chr. (1 February 2011)."New AU leader Obiang calls criticism un-African".Afrol News.Retrieved2014-01-31.
  25. ^"President Thomas Yayi Boni elected as Chairperson of the African Union for 2012"(PDF)(Press release). Addis Ababa: Directorate of Information and Communication, African Union Commission. 29 January 2012.
  26. ^Stainburn, Samantha (28 January 2013)."Hailemariam Desalegn, Ethiopia's PM, is new African Union Assembly chairman".GlobalPost.Retrieved31 January2014.
  27. ^"President Abdel Aziz of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania elected African Union Chairperson".Addis Ababa: African Union. 30 January 2014. Archived fromthe originalon 21 October 2018.Retrieved21 October2018.
  28. ^"Zimbabwe's Mugabe, 90, becomes African Union chairman".Reuters. 30 January 2015. Archived fromthe originalon 30 January 2015.Retrieved30 January2015.
  29. ^African Union [@_AfricanUnion](30 January 2016)."Prez Idriss Itno Déby of #Chad takes over as #AU Chairperson"(Tweet).Retrieved30 January2016– viaTwitter.
  30. ^"President Alpha Conde of Guinea Has Been Elected New Chairperson of the African Union (AU)".African Union. 30 January 2017.Retrieved31 January2017.
  31. ^"President Paul Kagame, Elected as New Chairperson of the African Union for the year 2018".African Union. 28 January 2018.Retrieved29 January2018.
  32. ^"The 32ND African Union (AU) Heads of State and Government Summit Kicks Off".African Union. 10 February 2019.Retrieved10 February2019.
  33. ^Simon (February 10, 2020)."South African President Cyril Ramaphosa elected African Union Chairperson as continent vows to" silence the guns, "boost trade and close gender gap".Today News Africa.RetrievedFebruary 10,2020.
  34. ^"President Felix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo Elected Chair Of The AU For The Year 2021".African Union. 22 February 2021.
  35. ^"PRESS RELEASES President Macky Sall of Senegal, Takes Over as the New Chairperson of the African Union (AU) for 2022".African Union. February 5, 2022.RetrievedFebruary 5,2022.
  36. ^AFP (18 February 2023)."New African Union chair brings controversial record to top post".France 24.Retrieved18 February2023.
  37. ^"President of Mauritania Elected As New Chairperson of AU".ENA English.Retrieved19 February2024.
  38. ^@_AfricanUnion (February 17, 2024)."Bureau of the Assembly 2024."(Tweet) – viaTwitter.

External links[edit]

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