60 years after its creation, what is the African Union still for?

Is the African Union still useful? Since its creation on the night of May 25 to 26, 1963, under the name of the Organization of African Unity, the institution has not really achieved its initial objectives.

Addis Ababa, May 25, 1963. Ethiopia is living through a historic moment overnight. While 32 Heads of State and Government met, they acted on the creation of the OAU, the Organization of African Unity, by signing the charter of african unity. In this charter, African leaders say they are "convinced that peoples have the inalienable right to determine their own destiny" and "conscious of the fact that freedom, equality, justice and dignity are essential objectives for the achievement legitimate aspirations of the African peoples”.

Above all, during this historic night, the 32 presidents and prime ministers ensure that their "duty" is to "put the natural and human resources of our continent at the service of the general progress" of the peoples "in all areas of human activity. ". Sixty years later, the Débys, the Obiangs and the others have not really honored their commitment. This duty of development has very often been erased by illegal enrichment or by a lack of will. Replaced by the African Union (AU) in 2002, the OAU therefore failed. The AU is taking the same path.

counter-productivity

Because if the objectives of the continental organization are to work for the promotion of democracy, human rights and development across Africa, it is clear that the AU has become an organization where the egos of the leaders at the head of its Commissions are flattered, far from one of the missions it had set itself: to resolve conflicts. From Ethiopia to Sudan, via Mali, it is clear that the African Union has been counterproductive.

One of the latest examples is the AU Peace Council in Lusaka in 2016, where the continent's leaders vowed to disarm political conflicts in Africa. Seven years later, the situation is terrible: according to the Small Arms Survey (SAS), 80% of small arms in Africa are held by civilians. And African conflicts are deadly. Currently in Khartoum, no African head of state has succeeded in enforcing the ceasefire. And the AU, from Sudan to Libya, has no power, preferring to let the West and the Persian Gulf countries pose as negotiators.

If the failure at the level of peace is obvious, it is just as obvious at the commercial level. We saw it during the Covid-19 pandemic: the AU wanted to have the WTO's decision to limit the manufacturing licenses of anti-Covid-19 vaccines by the intellectual property of Western pharmaceutical companies. The continental organization could have tried to issue vaccine manufacturing licenses but preferred to buy vaccines from abroad.

Hope is still allowed

The union so desired by the founders of the OAU would only be an illusion. We are far from the promises of the Addis Ababa summit, which advocated unity and reconciliation. At the time, the Senegalese Léopold Sédar Senghor and the Malian Modibo Keita had been scrambled since the fall of the federation of Mali. The two men marked the event with a historic hug. From now on, the dissensions are regular. We remember for example the case of Morocco, which withdrew from the organization because of Western Sahara, a member like him of the AU. "The powerlessness of the AU to assert the rights of the African peoples before the international community was blatantly illustrated in the Libyan conflict in 2011, during which the Western powers unilaterally and shamelessly arrogated to themselves the right to decide the future of the country," said former South African President Thabo Mbeki.

However, is the AU doomed to failure? The organization can still hope to take control of Africa's destiny. Notably because "the challenge of African development as defined by Africans is no longer a priority on the global political and economic agenda", summarizes Mbeki, who deplores "that the West is doing everything possible, through the through an alleged 'soft power', to confine Africa to dependence". An international community that “deliberately exploits our weaknesses in order to oust any African government that does not suit it and thus position itself as the only credible player in the destiny of Africa”.

This is where the AU's playing card lies. Sixty years after the birth of the OAU, the AU can still regain its letters of nobility. "We must not be afraid to defend the right to self-determination made concrete by the creation of the AU," concludes the former South African president. And it is the African Union that has the sacred mission to mobilize and unite our forces in order to realize this dream, without letting petty conflicts divide us”. And the ex-leader to warn: "If the realization of this dream was once again delayed, it could end up in an explosion".