Adopted by the Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU) at its 1167th Meeting held on 11 August 2023 on Experience Sharing Session between the PSC and the African Governance Architecture (AGA) Platform Members:

The Peace and Security Council,

Recalling Decision [Assembly/AU/Dec.304 (XV)] adopted by the 15thOrdinary Session of the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government held in July 2010 which provided the mandate for the establishment of a Pan African Architecture on Governance which was further established as African Governance Architecture(AGA) as a platform for dialogue between stakeholders; Declaration [Assembly/AU/Decl.1 (XVI)] adopted by the 16th Ordinary Session of the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government held in Addis Ababa, in January 2011 on the Theme: “Towards Greater Unity and Integration through Shared Values; also recalling Communiqués [PSC/PR/COMM.1098 (2022)] adopted at its 1098th meeting held on 11 August 2022; and [PSC/PR/COMM.1095 (2022)] adopted at its 1095th meeting held on 1 August 2022; 

Deeply concerned by the resurgence of unconstitutional changes of government on the Continent;

Taking note of the opening statement by H.E. Ambassador Willy Nyamitwe, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Burundi to the African Union (AU) and Chairperson of the Peace and Security Council of the AU for August 2023 and the introductory remarks by H.E. Ambassador Bankole Adeoye, AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, read on his behalf by Ms. Patience Chiradza, the Director for Governance and Conflict Prevention; also taking note of the statements by H.E. Ambassador Dr. James Pitia Morgan, Permanent Representative of the Republic of South Sudan and Chairperson of the PRC Sub-Committee on Human Rights, Democracy and Governance and by Dr. Solomon Ayele Dersso on behalf of Honorable Remy Lumbu, Chairperson of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) and Chairperson of the AGA Platform; and

Acting under Article 7 of its Protocol, the Peace and Security Council:

1. Welcomes the second engagement with the PRC Sub-Committee on Human Rights, Democracy and Governance, as well as with the AGA Platform Members; 

2. Underlines the importance of enhanced synergies between the PSC and the PRC Sub-Committee on Human Rights, Democracy and Governance, as well as with the African Governance Platform by adopting initiatives aimed at promoting democratic governance and stability in Africa as well as holistic and multidimensional approaches based on the nexus peace, security and development, as endorsed by the Tangier Declaration; 

3. Commends the work that has been accomplished so far by the PRC Sub Committee on Human Rights Democracy and Governance; 

4. Underlines the need for commitment by Member States towards the universal ratification, domestication, implementation and reporting of on AU Shared Value, particularly, the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (ACDEG) and, in this regard, encourages all Member States, which have not yet done so, to sign, ratify and domesticate the Charter; 

5. Underscores the importance of further enhancing the institutional capacities of Member States through building of strong governance systems for prevention, early warning and early action; strengthen the Continental governance architecture, peace and security architecture and create transversal working linkages between Organs RECs and the Union for effectiveness; engage citizens meaningfully with special consideration for youth, women and vulnerable groups; and establish knowledge based smart partnerships;

6. Acknowledges the significant contribution of the AGA Platform towards the promotion of democratic governance, peace and security in the Continent, as well as towards the enhancement of the nexus between the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) and the African Governance Architecture (AGA);

7. Requests the AU Commission to expedite the operationalization of the African Governance Facility, in order to facilitate effective resource mobilization  to support the initiatives of the African Governance Platform and Member States towards the promotion of good governance and strengthening of democracy on the Continent; and in the same context, also requests the AU Commission to  further strengthen the PRC Sub Committee on HRDG and the AGP, as well as the institutional capacity of the AGA-APSA Secretariat to more effectively discharge their respective mandates;

8. Emphasizes the need for enhanced synergies and complementarity of efforts between and among the AGA and APSA, the Council and the PRC Sub-committee, the Africa Governance Platform, while respecting each other's respective mandate; 

9. Calls upon the AGA Platform members and the Bureau to engage the PSC in the work of the Platform to continue to further enhance their consultative engagements aimed at transforming the democratic and good governance agenda into tangible results; 

10. Stresses the need for the PSC Chairperson of the Month and the PSC Secretariat to engage more actively in the statutory meetings of the African Governance Platform annually;

11. Requests the AU Commission, the African Governance Platform and the AGA-APSA Secretariat to organize a joint consultative meeting to identify joint initiatives beyond the experience sharing sessions, paying particular attention to the following areas; 

12. Joint PSC, the PRC Sub Committee and the AGP promotional visits on AU shared values instruments;

13. More active role in preventive diplomacy and mediation efforts;

14. PSC involvement in the planning and delivery of the AGA Flagship Initiatives;

15. Establishment of follow-up mechanisms of the decisions of the joint session between PSC and AGP; and

16. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.

COMMENTS