Strengthening Popular Participation in the African Union: A guide to AU structures and processes

8/7/2019 Strengthening Popular Participation in the African Union: A guide to AU structures and processes

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StrengtheningPoPular ParticiPationin the african union

a g au Ss Psss

ArMAP

An Open Society Institute Network Publication


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In memory ofTajudeen Abdul Raheem

Pan-Africanist19562009

First published in 2009 by the Open Society Initiative or Southern Arica and Oxam GB.

Copyright 2009 Open Society Initiative or Southern Arica (OSISA) and Oxam GB

ISBN 978-1-920355-24-1

All rights reserved. Redistribution o the material presented in this work is

encouraged, provided that the original text is not altered, that the original source isproperly and ully acknowledged and that the objective o the redistribution is notor commercial gain. Please contact [email protected] i you wish to reproduce,

redistribute or transmit, in any orm or by any means, this work or any portion thereo.

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Contents

Acknowledgements v

Acronyms vi

INTRODUCTION:

THE PURPOSE OF THIS GUIDE 1

PART 1

AU ORGANS & INSTITUTIONS 3

> Assembly o Heads o State and Government 6

> Chairperson o the Arican Union 8

> Executive Council o Ministers 10

> Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC) 12

> Commission o the Arican Union 14

> Peace and Security Council (PSC) 18

> Pan-Arican Parliament (PAP) 21

> Arican Commission on Human and Peoples

Rights (ACHPR) 22

> Arican Committee o Experts on the Rights and

Welare o the Child 24

> Arican Court on Human and Peoples Rights

(to become the Arican Court o Justice and

Human Rights) 25

> Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC) 27

> New Partnership or Aricas Development (NEPAD) 29

> Arican Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) 31

> Specialised Technical Committees (STCs) 33


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> Financial Institutions 34

> Funding o the Arican Union 35

> Regional Economic Communities (RECs) 36

PART 2

INFLUENCING AU DECISIONS & POLICIES 37

> The AU decision-making process 39

> Civil society engagement with the AU Organs 41

> NGO observer status with the AU 43

> Accessing inormation 44

> Inuencing national-level decisions on AU proposals 46

>Civil law (rancophone and lusophone) countries 46

>Common law (anglophone / Commonwealth)

countries 47

> AU Summits 48

>Ofcial pre-summit meetings or civil societyorganisations 49

>Accreditation to summits 50

>Communicating with delegations 51

>Media acilities at summits 52

PART 3

THE UNION GOvERNmENT DEbATE 55

APPENDICES 61

> Appendix 1: AU Regions 62

> Appendix 2: Regional Economic Communities recognised

by the Arican Union 64

> Appendix 3: Useul websites and contacts 66


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Acknowledgements

This guide was researched and written by Rudo Chitiga, a development

policy consultant, and Bronwen Manby, o the Open Society Institutes

Arica Governance Monitoring and Advocacy Project (AriMAP), with

important contributions rom Irng Houghton, Pan-Arica Director,

Oxam GB, as well as Ibrahima Kane, Nobuntu Mbelle, Achieng Akena,

Desir Assogbavi, Pascal Kambale, Dismas Nkunda, Ozias Tungwarara,

Dolphine Ndeda and Mary Anne Fitzgerald.

Much o the inormation in this guide is drawn rom the report Towardsa People-Driven African Union: Current Obstacles and New Opportunities

(AriMAP, AFRODAD and Oxam GB, January 2007, updated November

2007) available on the websites o the publishing organisations. Additional

inormation is derived rom the report o the Audit of the African Union

presented to Heads o State and Government in January 2008. The

drating o the guide was also enriched by a workshop organised in April

2007 in Accra by the Institute or Democratic Governance (IDEG), Ghana,

and Oxam GB with the support o Oxam Novib.

Thanks to all those who oered lessons and insights on how civil society

organisations can work more eectively to engage and inuence the

Arican Union and its various organs.

All contributions in the orm o case studies, comments and updates on

the issues included in this guide are greatly appreciated: please send to

[email protected].


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Acronyms

AEC Arican Economic Community

APRM Arican Peer Review Mechanism

AU Arican Union

CIDO Arican Citizens and Diaspora Directorate

(o the AU Commission)

CSO Civil society organisation

ECOSOCC Economic, Social and Cultural Council

EU European UnionG8 Group o eight industrialised countries

NEPAD New Partnership or Aricas Development

NGO Non-governmental organisation

OAU Organisation o Arican Unity

PAP Pan-Arican Parliament

PRC Permanent Representatives Council

PSC Peace and Security Council

REC Regional Economic CommunityUN United Nations


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IntroductionThe purpose o this guide


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2 introduction

The Arican Union (AU) has committed to a vision o Arica that is

integrated, prosperous and peaceul driven by its own citizens, a

dynamic orce in the global arena (Vision and Mission of the African Union,

May 2004).

This guide is an eort to take up the challenge o achieving this vision. It

is a tool to assist activists to engage with AU policies and programmes.

It describes the AU decision-making process and outlines the roles and

responsibilities o the AU institutions. It also contains a sampling o the

experiences o those non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that have

interacted with the AU.

There are good reasons or engaging with the AU. It is the premier

inter-governmental organisation or the Arican continent. It is the body

responsible or the realisation o Arican unity and political and economic

integration, and or promoting Aricas social, political, economic and

cultural development. It is the principal organisation or promoting

Aricas relations with the outside world, its image and the interests o its

citizens.

Non-Arican governments and multilateral agencies recognise the

strategic role played by the AU. Among those who have appointed special

representatives to the AU are the United States o America, China, India,

the United Nations (UN) and the European Union (EU). They also send

representatives to AU Summits and other AU meetings.

There are important proposals under discussion or the restructuring o

the AU and its organs, to advance the integration o the Arican continent

more rapidly. These discussions create new opportunities or interaction

between civil society and AU organs.

This guide aims to help those organisations that wish to engage the AU

but do not currently know where to start by providing an outline o the keyinstitutions and processes and suggesting ways to inuence them.

The Guide is divided into three sections:

Part 1: A description o AU organs and institutions.>

Part 2: Suggestions on how to inuence AU decisions and policy>

processes.

Part 3: A summary o the debate to restructure the AU into a>

Union Government.


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Part OneAU Organs & Institutions

> Assembly o Heads o State and Government

> Chairperson o the Arican Union > Executive Council o Ministers

> Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC)

> Commission o the Arican Union

> Peace and Security Council (PSC)

> Pan-Arican Parliament (PAP)

> Arican Commission on Human and Peoples

Rights (ACHPR)

> Arican Committee o Experts on the Rights and

Welare o the Child

> Arican Court on Human and Peoples Rights

(to become the Arican Court o Justice and

Human Rights)

> Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC)

> New Partnership or Aricas Development (NEPAD)

> Arican Peer Review Mechanism (APRM)

> Specialised Technical Committees (STCs)

> Financial Institutions

> Funding o the Arican Union

> Regional Economic Communities (RECs)


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4 part 1: au organs & institutions

The Arican Union is the successor to the Organisation o Arican Unity

(OAU), the inter-governmental organisation or Arican states in existence

since 1963, created with the aim o strengthening integration among

Member States and the voice o the Arican continent in global aairs.

With the end o the Cold War, the fnal liberation o South Arica, and

the reshaping o the international political scene, Arican Heads o State

recognised that the OAU ramework was no longer adequate to meet the

needs or greater continental policy coordination and stronger economic

growth, and that a greater commitment to democratic government at

national level was necessary to strengthen Aricas own voice on the

international stage. The structures o the European Union were taken as a

model or a new confguration o the Arican continental body.

The Constitutive Act o the AU, its ounding document, was adopted by

Heads o State in 2000 in Lom, Togo, and entered into orce in 2001.

The inaugural summit o the AU was held in Durban, South Arica, in July

2002. Its frst objective is to Achieve greater unity and solidarity among

Arican countries and among the peoples o Arica.

Whereas the purposes set out in the OAU Charter ocused on the deence

o the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence o Arican states

and the eradication o all orms o colonialism rom Arica, the AU has a

much broader set o objectives, including the promotion o peace, security,

and stability; democratic principles and institutions, popular participation

and good governance; and human and peoples rights.

The AU has 53 Member States. Only Morocco is not a member among

states on the continent; it withdrew rom the OAU in 1984 to protest the

admission o the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (Western Sahara) as

a member.

Embedded within the structures o the AU is the Arican EconomicCommunity (AEC), established by a treaty adopted in Abuja, Nigeria, in

1991, as an integral part o the OAU, and sharing a secretariat with OAU

(now AU) structures. The Constitutive Act o the AU and the Abuja Treaty

o the AEC are complementary and jointly provide the legal bases or

continental integration.

Most o the key organs o the AU are established under the provisions

o the AU Constitutive Act. But some are set up under protocols to the

Constitutive Act or to the Abuja Treaty establishing the AEC, ree-standingtreaties or other legal documentation. The rest o Part 1 describes

these bodies as they now exist. Important reorms are planned to these

structures, discussed in Part 3.


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part1

5part 1: au organs & institutions

StructureS of the african union

Organs established or proposed under the Constitutive Act:

Assembly o Heads o State and Government (and its>

Chairperson)Executive Council o Ministers>

Permanent Representatives Committee>

Commission o the Arican Union>

Economic, Social and Cultural Council>

Pan-Arican Parliament>

Court o Justice>

Specialised Technical Committees>

Financial institutions: Arican Central Bank, Arican Investment>

Bank and Arican Monetary Fund.

Institutions and initiatives established by other treaties, protocols or

agreements:

Peace and Security Council>

Arican Commission on Human and Peoples Rights>

Arican Committee o Experts on the Rights and Welare o the>

ChildArican Court on Human and Peoples Rights>

New Partnership or Aricas Development (NEPAD)>

Arican Peer Review Mechanism>

Related institutions:

Regional Economic Communities>


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Assembly o Heads o State and Government

The Assembly o the Arican Union comprises the Heads o State and

Government o all Member States and is the highest decision-making body

o the AU. Since 2005, the Assembly has met in ordinary session twice

(previously it was only once) a year, in JanuaryFebruary and in JuneJuly.

The Chairperson o the AU or any Member State can call an extraordinary

session with the consent o at least two-thirds o all Member States.

The powers and unctions o the Assembly are stipulated in Article 9 o the

AU Constitutive Act and include the ollowing:

Determination o the common policies o the Union>>Monitoring the implementation o the decisions o the Union>

and ensuring compliance by Member States

Issue o directives and regulations to the Executive Council>>Oversight over the aairs o the Union>>Establishment o new organs o the Union>>Appointment o certain categories o the AU personnel>>according to their respective rules and procedures

Consideration o requests or membership o the Union>

Approval and adoption o the AU budget>>

The Assembly adopts decisions by majority vote. At most summits, the

Assembly will adopt two types o proposal: decisions, which are binding

on Member States according to their language; and declarations, which

are intended to guide and harmonise the viewpoints o Member States

but are not binding. Voting is by secret ballot, except or election o theChairperson and Deputy-Chairpersons.

Treaties (Conventions and Charters) and their Protocols are adopted

by decision but enter into orce only ater they have been ratifed by a

sufcient number o Member States, and legally bind those Member

States that have ratifed them.

>

For a lst o Arcan Heads o State vst:

www.arica-union.org/root/au/memberstates/Heads_o_State_and_Government.htm


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I any Member State ails to comply with the decisions and policies

o the AU, the Assembly can impose sanctions under Article 23 o the

Constitutive Act, including not only denial o the right to speak and vote

at meetings, but also measures o a political and economic nature such

as the denial o transport and communication links with other MemberStates.


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Chairperson o the Arican Union

A Head o State is elected by the Assembly to serve a one-year term as

Chairperson o the AU. The Chairperson o the AU chairs meetings o

the Assembly and guides the proceedings. Between sessions, he or she

represents the AU both within Arica and on the international stage, and

may assist in conict resolution initiatives or other matters. There is not,

however, a clear mechanism or ensuring that the views expressed by the

Chairperson reect a consensus o all Member States.

The Head o State who is Chairperson o the AU chairs the Assembly o

Heads o State and Government. The Minister o Foreign Aairs o the same

Member State chairs the Executive Council and the Ambassador to the AU

chairs the Permanent Representatives Committee. The Chairpersons State

is usually (though not always) the host o the mid-year summit.

The choice o Chairperson or the AU has already caused controversy. In

2005, Sudan began lobbying to be elected the next Chairperson o the

Arican Union at the July summit, taking over rom President Obasanjo o

Nigeria. Because o concerns over the conict in Sudans Darur Province,

Obasanjos AU term was instead extended by six months. In January 2006,

Sudan was rebued once again, even though the summit was held in

Khartoum rather than Addis Ababa as is usual or the January meetings.

President Sassou Nguesso o the Republic o Congo took the seat instead

and the Assembly also decided to create a Committee to consider the

implementation o a rotation system between the regions in relation to

the presidency. In January 2007, Sudan again lost out to President Kuuor

o Ghana (celebrating 50 years o independence that year); and in January

2008, when the East Arican region (o which Sudan orms part) fnally got

its turn, the presidency went instead to Tanzania.

Charpersons o the Arcan Unon snce t was ounded:

July 2002 July 2003 Thabo Mbeki, South Arica

July 2003 July 2004 Joaquim Chissano, Mozambique

July 2004 Dec 2005 Olusegun Obasanjo, Nigeria (term extended 6 months)

Jan Dec 2006 Denis Sassou Nguesso, Republic o CongoJan Dec 2007 John Agyekum Kuuor, Ghana

Jan Dec 2008 Jakaya Kikwete, Tanzania

Jan Dec 2009 Muammar Al-Gaddaf, Libya

>


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NGOa: The Darur Consortium

The conict in Darur, Sudan, has claimed the lives o more than 250,000

people and displaced more than a million. The Darur Consortium is

a coalition o more than thirty NGOs committed to end the ongoing

humanitarian and human rights crisis. The Consortium was ormed on the

ringes o the third extraordinary session o the Arican Commission on

Human and Peoples Rights, which was called to discuss the situation in

Sudan and was held in Pretoria, South Arica in 2004.

The Consortium has ensured that the Darur crisis has been on the agenda

o AU summits since it began. This work has included engagement not just

with political organs o the AU, such as the summit o Heads o State, but also

with individual leading states and continental rights bodies such as the AricanCommission on Human and Peoples Rights.

In particular, the Consortium opposed Sudans bid to take over the chair

o the AU rom Nigeria, as representative o the East Arican region. The

Consortium mobilised both its own members and a wider group o civil

society organisations to sign strong statements opposing Sudans candidacy

in advance o the January 2006 Khartoum summit, where Sudan ully

expected to be elected by the Assembly. Individual Consortium members

lobbied hard in their own countries. A letter rom the outgoing AU Chairman,

President Olusegun Obasanjo o Nigeria, indicated that the issues raised by

the Consortium were undamental and that they would be considered at the

summit. Sudanese security agents disruption o a Consortium workshop held

in Khartoum (despite visa difculties) on justice and accountability issues in

Arica, including Darur, received extensive media coverage and diplomatic

condemnation. The Assembly decided to appoint President Denis Sassou-

Nguesso o the Republic o Congo as Chairperson o the AU in place o Sudan.

Sudan was a candidate or the Chairperson once again in January 2007.

Consortium partners distributed yers, organised demonstrations, a prayerservice and other events or Darur at the World Social Forum held in Nairobi

in early December 2006, in addition to collecting 500 signatures rom

participants or a solidarity petition to the leaders o the AU. At the January

2007 Addis Ababa summit, Heads o State decided to extend the Chairperson

o the Arican Union to Ghana, in honour o the 50th anniversary o its

independence.

Darur Consortium: www.darurconsortium.org

!


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Executive Council o Ministers

The Executive Council is composed o Ministers o Foreign Aairs. It

takes some decisions in its own right, and also prepares decisions or and

reports to the Assembly.

The Executive Council has powers under the Constitutive Act to coordinate

and take decisions in the areas o oreign trade, energy, industry and

mineral resources, ood security, agriculture and animal resources,

livestock production and orestry, water resources and irrigation,

environmental protection, humanitarian action and disaster response

and relie, transport and communications, insurance, education, culture,

health and human resources development.

The Executive Council is also responsible or administrative and legal

matters, including the elections o AU ofcials, as delegated by the

Assembly. Since 2003, it has been delegated by the Assembly to debate

and approve the activity reports o the Arican Commission on Human

and Peoples Rights and the Arican Court on Human and Peoples Rights,

beore they are published.

>


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The AU regons and the Bureau

In addition to plenary meetings o AU organs attended by all Member States, many

important decisions are taken among sub-groups o Member States, in particular

at the level o the fve political regions o the AU, and by the members o the bureauelected each year to manage the AUs aairs. While these meetings also take place

at Head o State and Foreign Minister level, the discussions among representatives

within the PRC are the most regular, carry out most o the preparatory work, and

manage day-to-day business.

The fve regons o the AU Member States o the AU are divided into fve geographic

regions east, west, north, southern and central Arica (see Annexure 1 or a map

indicating the fve regions). Each regional caucus elects a dean each year who

convenes meetings to determine common positions on key issues. These are

separate consultations rom those at the level o the Regional Economic Communities

(see below), though the overlapping membership means that positions may coincide.

The Member States o the fve regons o the AU are as ollows:

EASTComoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Rwanda, Somalia,Seychelles, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda.

CENTRAL

Burundi, Cameroon, Central Arican Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic o Congo,Republic o Congo, Gabon, So Tom and Prncipe.

NORTHAlgeria, Egypt, Libya, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Tunisia.

SOUTHAngola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Arica, Swaziland,Zambia, Zimbabwe.

WESTBenin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cte dIvoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea,Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Nigeria, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo.

The bureau Each year at the mid-year summit, a bureau o 15 Member States (three

rom each region) is elected to guide the AU processes or the next year. The bureau

at PRC level is responsible or preparations or summits, including determining the

provisional agenda. The bureau meets as a drating committee or key decisions and

discusses strategies on how to handle sensitive issues.

i


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Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC)

The Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC) is made up o all the

ambassador-level representatives o Member States accredited to the

AU in Addis Ababa. The PRC has oversight o the day-to-day running o

the Commission, making it one o the most inuential organs o the AU.

It meets at least once a month, usually at the AU headquarters in Addis

Ababa.

The PRC is mandated by the Constitutive Act to work closely with

the Commission to implement AU programmes and to monitor the

implementation o decisions reached at summits. According to the PRCs

rules o procedure, any Member State, AU organ or Regional Economic

Community may propose items or the agenda.

Its powers and unctions all in our areas:

Liaison between Member States and the AU Commission>>Oversight over the Commission>>Support to the Executive Council in executing its powers and>

unctionsAssisting the preparation o the Unions programme o activities>

The PRC is supposed to meet at least once a month (usually in Addis

Ababa) to discuss recommendations or adoption by the Executive

Council.

The Constitutive Act and the Committees rules o procedure allow it to

orm sub-committees to acilitate its work.

>


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Sub-committeeS of the Prc

The sub-committees discuss technical and administrative questions, as

delegated by the ull PRC.

Advisory sub-committee on administrative, budgetary and> fnancial matters

Sub-committee on programmes and conerences>

Sub-committee on reugees>

Sub-committee on contributions>

Policy sub-committee o the Special Emergency Assistance Fund>

or drought and amine in Arica

Sub-committee on structural reorms>

Sub-committee on headquarters and host agreements>

Sub-committee on economic and trade matters>

Sub-committee on multilateral cooperation>


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Commission o the Arican Union

The Arican Union, and particularly its Coission, is ready to

engage with ciil society. You hae iense contriutions to

ake.

Ambassador John K. Shinkaiye,

Chie o Sta,

Arican Union Commission

The Commission o the Arican Union acts as the AUs secretariatand is

based in Addis Ababa. According to the Constitutive Act, the Commission

is composed o a Chairperson, his/her deputy or deputies, Commissioners

and sta.

The Assembly determines the Commissions structure, unctions

and regulations. Heads o State also elect the Chairperson, Deputy

Chairperson and the Commissioners, and assign policy portolios to the

chosen individuals. There are eight Commissioners, who manage the day-

to-day tasks o the AU in relation to their portolios. These ofcials hold

ofce or concurrent fve year terms.

The Chairperson o the AU Commission reports to the Executive Council

o Ministers.

In February 2009, the AU Assembly resolved to transorm the AU

Commission into an AU Authority, with stronger powers (discussed in Part

3). The responsibilities o the Commissioners will be slightly modifed as

part o this transormation: however, the basic structure o Chairperson,Deputy Chairperson and eight Commissioners (to be renamed Secretaries)

remains. In the table below, the portolio name is given both or the AU

Commission and the new name under the AU Authority (i relevant). The

list o responsibilities is based on the new assignments.

The Commission both initiates policy and budget proposals or

consideration by other AU organs and is responsible or implementing

the decisions o the PRC, Executive Council o Ministers and Assembly.

It also provides operational support to the Peace and Security Council,ECOSOCC, the Committee o Experts on the Rights and Welare o the

Child and other AU activities.

As at late 2008, there were close to 700 people working or the AU

>


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Commission: though the approved complement is substantially larger the

budget has not allowed more to be employed.

The Arican Citizens and Diaspora Directorate (CIDO), located in the

ofce o the chairperson, is the ofcial liaison ofce or civil society

organisations rom Arica or the Arican diaspora wishing to interact

with the Commission. CIDO is responsible or accrediting NGOs to

attend summits and other meetings and acts also as the secretariat or

ECOSOCC, the AUs civil society organ.

Responsbltes o the derent Departments and Drectorates wthn the

AU Commsson:

> OFFiCE OF THE CHAiRPERSON

Ofce o the Legal CounselStatus o country ratifcations, drating and interpretation o treaties

Women, Gender and Development DrectorateGender issues, country reports or implementation o solemn declaration onwomens rights

Arcan Ctzens and Daspora Drectorate (CiDO)Civil society and diaspora issues, accreditation to meetings, observer status,support to ECOSOCC

> OFFiCE OF THE DEPUTy CHAiRPERSON

Conerences and EventsOrganisation o AU meetings

Human resourcesManagement o AU Commission sta

Fnance and budgetAnalysis o AU budget and resource allocation priorities

ProtocolAccreditation procedures


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> DEPARTMENTS HEADED By COMMiSSiONERS

Peace and SecurtNew name: Peace Securt and Common Deence

Conict prevention and management, peacekeeping, terrorism, transnational crime

Poltcal AarsNew name: Poltcal Aars and Coordnaton o Common Postons onExternal Relatons

Political cooperation, governance, elections, human rights, humanitarian aairs,ree movement o persons, fnancial crimes

inrastructure and Energ

Transport and energy inrastructure

Socal AarsNew Name: Health and Socal Aars

Children, crime prevention, human trafcking, population, migration, labour andemployment, sports and culture, epidemics including HIV and AIDS

Human Resources, Scence and TechnologNew Name: Educaton, Human Resources and Scence and Technolog

Inormation and communication technology, youth, research, universities,intellectual property

Trade and industrNew name: Trade, industr and internatonal Cooperaton

International trade negotiations, trade, industry, customs and immigration, reemovement o goods and services, tourism

Rural Econom and AgrcultureNew name: Rural Econom, Agrculture and Envronment

Agriculture and ood security, livestock, water, desertifcation, natural resources,climate change

Economc Aars

Economic integration, international economic cooperation, monetary aairs, privatesector development, investment and resource mobilisation, poverty reduction,statistics


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ngo a: Womens rights coalitions work with the AU Commission

In 2003, ater a long campaign by womens rights groups, the Assembly

approved a Protocol to the Arican Charter on Human and Peoples Rights on

the Rights o Women in Arica. It is one o the most ar-sighted instruments

on womens rights anywhere in the world. By July 2004, only Comoros had

ratifed the Protocol. Womens rights organisations including the coalition

Solidarity or Arican Womens Rights (SOAWR), the Arican Womens

Development and Communication Network (FEMNET), WILDAF-West Arica

and Southern Arica Womens Agenda ound an enthusiastic partner in the

AU Commissions Women, Gender and Development Directorate or advocacy

to achieve ratifcation by 15 countries, the minimum number required beore

the protocol could enter into orce.

The SOAWR coalition reached out to national womens organisations and

ormed a Pan-Arican steering committee with Equality Now in Kenya as its

secretariat. It published books, issued press releases and lobbied AU sta and

permanent representatives, as well as submitting a petition to Heads o State

or the ratifcation o the Protocol on the Rights o Women and issuing report

cards at summits on whether Member States had yet ratifed.

Femmes Arica Solidarit (FAS) also worked with the AU Commissions

Women, Gender and Development Directorate to lobby successully or the

creation o an Arican Womens Committee or Peace and Development and

has collaborated with the Commission and the new Committee in the Gender

Is My Agenda campaign on violence against women.

At the July 2004 summit in Addis Ababa, the Assembly adopted the Solemn

Declaration on Gender Equality in Arica, committing the AU to gender parity

in its appointments, and Arican leaders to action to address a range o issues

aecting gender equality, including the impact o HIV and AIDS on women.

The Protocol on the Rights o Women in Arica received its fteenth ratifcation

and entered into orce in November 2005, less than two years ater womens

organisations began their campaign or national ratifcations.

SOAWR: www.soawr.org

FEMNET: www.emnet.or.ke

FAS: www.asngo.org

WILDAF: www.wilda.org.zw

Gender is my Agenda Campaign: www.genderismyagenda.com !


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Peace and Security Council (PSC)

The Peace and Security Council (PSC) was established as an organ o the

AU under a protocol to the Constitutive Act adopted by the AU Assembly

in July 2002. The protocol defnes the PSC as a collective security and early

warning arrangement to acilitate timely and eective response to conict

and crisis situations in Arica.

The PSC has the power, among other things, to authorise peace support

missions, to impose sanctions in case o unconstitutional change o

government, and to take initiatives and action it deems appropriate in

response to potential or actual conicts. The PSC is a decision-making

body in its own right, and its decisions are binding on Member States.

Article 4 o the Constitutive Act, repeated in article 4 o the PSC Protocol,

recognises the right o the Union to intervene in a Member State in case

o war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. Any decision to

intervene in a Member State under article 4 o the Constitutive Act will be

made by the Assembly on the recommendation o the PSC.

The Peace and Security Council is also responsible or implementation othe Non-aggression and Common Deence Pact adopted in 2005 (not yet

in orce), among whose commitments are that State Parties undertake

to prohibit and prevent genocide, other orms o mass murder as well as

crimes against humanity.

The PSC comprises 15 Member States with equal voting rights elected by

the Assembly or two- or three-year terms.

The Council operates at three levels:

Heads o state must meet at least once a year>

Ministerial representatives must meet at least once a year>

Permanent representatives must meet twice a month and>

more oten i required

The Chairperson o the Council can call a meeting at any time.

Since it frst met in 2004, the PSC has been active in relation to the crises

in Darur, Comoros, Somalia, Democratic Republic o Congo, Burundi,

Cte dIvoire and other countries. It has recommended the creation o AU

peacekeeping operations in Somalia and Darur, and the imposition o

sanctions against persons undermining peace and security (such as travel

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bans and asset reezes against the leaders o the rebellion in Comoros).

The Council is overseeing the establishment o the AU Standby Force

which will serve as a permanent Arican security orce. There are proposals

to involve the PSC in the enorcement o the decisions o the Arican

Commission on Human and Peoples Rights.

Article 20 o the PSC protocol requires the PSC to encourage civil society

organisations to participate actively in the eorts aimed at promoting

peace, security and stability in Arica and allows the PSC to invite them

to address it directly. In December 2008, the PSC adopted a document

setting out the modalities or interaction with civil society organisations,

known as the Livingstone Formula. The ormula provides or the PSC to

consult with ECOSOCC and invite individual civil society organisations

to address its meetings. Civil society organisations rom both Kenya andZimbabwe have brieed members o the PSC on events in their countries,

and South Aricas Institute or Security Studies has ormally brieed the

PSC itsel.

The PSC Secretariat is based in the Peace and Security Department at the

AU Commission headquarters in Addis Ababa.

PSC webpage:www.arica-union.org/root/au/organs/The_Peace_%20and_Security_Council_en.htm

insttute or Securt Studes webpage on the PSC:

www.issarica.org/index.php?link_id=3893&slink_id=3026&link_type=12&slink_

type=12&tmpl_id=3 i


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ngo a: SaerArica and SalaamNet

SaerArica, a South Arican NGO, provided support to the AU Commissions

Peace and Security Department which led to the Executive Councils adoption

o a policy on post-conict reconstruction and development at the June 2006

summit in Banjul, Gambia. SaerArica led the team that drated the policy

ramework ater several experts meetings on peacekeeping, reconstruction

and stability. SaerArica will provide a pool o technical experts to support

implementation at regional and national levels.

SaerArica: www.saerarica.org/progs/peace/pcrd.php

SalaamNet was ormed in November 2006 as a network to provide the AU andits partners with detailed research and analysis to inorm conict resolution

and prevention. Composed largely o NGOs, with a secretariat based at the

Institute or Security Studies (South Arica) ofce in Addis Ababa, SalaamNet

aims to enhance the capacity o Arican civil society and the continental

institutions to produce high quality research on conict issues, and to play a

complementary role to other continental structures, including ECOSOCC and

the RECs, as well as the Peace and Security Council.

Salaamnet: www.salaamnet.org!


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Pan-Arican Parliament (PAP)

The Pan-Arican Parliament (PAP) is recognised as one o the organs

o the AU under the Constitutive Act, though its detailed legal basis is

a protocol to the 1991 Abuja Treaty establishing the Arican Economic

Community. The PAP has its secretariat in Midrand, South Arica, where it

holds its regular sessions in November and March each year. It frst met in

March 2004.

According to the protocol, PAP is expected to exercise advisory and

consultative unctions. These unctions are to be reviewed ater fve years

o its existence, with a view to giving it stronger powers, including to pass

legislation. In January 2009, the Assembly authorised the AU Commission

to initiate this review process. PAP reports to the Assembly and its budget

is processed through the policy organs o the AU. It is presided over by a

Bureau headed by a Chairperson and our Vice Chairpersons. It has ten

permanent committees responsible or dierent thematic issues and the

management o the parliaments business.

Each o the Member States that have ratifed the PAP is entitled to fve

representatives to its meetings, selected rom national parliaments or

other deliberative bodies, at least one o whom must be a woman. As o

August 2009, all AU Member States except Cte dIvoire, the Democratic

Republic o Congo, Eritrea, Guinea, Somalia and So Tom and Prncipe

had ratifed the PAP protocol.

PAP: www.pan-arcanparlament.org

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Arican Commission on Humanand Peoples Rights (ACHPR)

The Arican Commission on Human and Peoples Rights (ACHPR) was

established in 1986 in accordance with the provisions o the Arican

Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, and works to protect and promote

the rights set out in the Charter. Its secretariat is located in Banjul,

Gambia. The eleven Commissioners, who are nominated by Member

States but serve in their personal capacity, meet in ordinary session twice

a year. The Commission can also call extraordinary sessions, and did soin 1995 ollowing the execution o Ken Saro-Wiwa in Nigeria, and in 2004

in response to the crisis in Darur (as well as on other occasions or more

procedural matters).

States are supposed to report to the Commission every two years on the

measures they have taken to give eect to the rights in the Charter, but

many are in deault o this obligation.

Arican and international human rights organisations can obtain observer

status with the Arican Commission. Once they have observer status, theycan submit documentation and speak at the Commissions sessions.

An NGO orum is also usually organised in advance o each Arican

Commission session. NGOs are very oten co-opted by the Commission

to contribute to the work o its special mechanisms (special rapporteurs

and working groups) or to help in organising seminars. Many o the

important documents adopted by the Commission have been drated

with the assistance o human rights NGOs. Individuals, or organisations

on their behal, can lodge complaints with the Commission o violationsby Member States o the Arican Charter on Human and Peoples Rights.

Since it frst met, the Commission has ruled against Member States on a

wide range o issues.

The Commission reports to the Executive Council at each summit, and

its decisions on individual complaints are not public until they have been

adopted by the Council and Assembly.

Arcan Commsson on Human and Peoples Rghts:

www.achpr.org

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ngo a: NGOs working with the Arican human rights institutions

The Institute or Human Rights and Development in Arica and the Arican

Centre or Democracy and Human Rights Studies are both NGOs based in

Banjul, close to the secretariat o the Arican Commission on Human and

Peoples Rights, and work to acilitate civil society engagement with the

ACHPR and other Arican human rights bodies.

The Arican Centre has or many years hosted NGO orums in advance o the

sessions o the Commission; while the Institute has conducted trainings on

the Arican human rights system or Arican human rights activists, worked

with the Commission and with the Arican Committee o Experts on the Rights

and Welare o the Child on the drating o their procedures, and has also

brought individual communications to the Commission and Committee oExperts.

Institute or Human Rights and Development in Arica: www.aricaninstitute.org

Arican Centre or Democracy and Human Rights Studies: www.acdhrs.org!


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Arican Committee o Experts on the Rightsand Welare o the Child

The Arican Committee o Experts on the Rights and Welare o the Child

was established in 2001, with the mandate to protect and promote the

rights set out in the Arican Charter on the Rights and Welare o the Child

(adopted in 1990, entered into orce 1999). It usually meets twice a year

to consider reports rom member governments on the implementation

o the Charter. It then drats a report to be tabled beore the Assembly oHeads o State and Government. The Committee o Experts has a small

secretariat in Addis Ababa, based at the AU Commission.

www.arca-unon.org/chld/home.htm

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AU treates and ther status:

www.arica-union.org/root/AU/Documents/Treaties/treaties.htm

Arican Court on Human and Peoples Rights(to become the Arican Court o Justice andHuman Rights)

A 1998 protocol to the Arican Charter on Human and Peoples Rights to

establish an Arican Court on Human and Peoples Rights came into orce

in 2004. The frst judges were sworn in during the July 2006 AU summit,

and the Court is based in Arusha, Tanzania.

In addition, the Constitutive Act provides or a Court o Justice to rule on

disputes over interpretation o AU treaties. A protocol to set up the Court

o Justice was adopted in 2003, but did not enter into orce.

A decision to merge the two courts and establish a combined Arican Court

o Justice and Human Rights was taken at the June 2004 summit. In July

2008, Heads o State fnally adopted the Protocol on the Statute o the

Arican Court o Justice and Human Rights, which will supersede the two

existing protocols. The merged court, which will also be based in Arusha,

will have two chambers, or human rights and general matters. The new

protocol will come into eect once 15 states have ratifed it; in the meantime

the Arican Court on Human and Peoples Rights remains in place.

The Court o Justice and Human Rights will have the authority to judge

disputes about the Constitutive Act and the other protocols and treaties

adopted by the AU (or the OAU), including the Arican Charter on Human

and Peoples Rights and its protocols. Cases can be reerred to the court

by AU Member States that have ratifed the protocol, by the Arican

Commission on Human and Peoples Rights, by the Assembly, and by the

AU Commission. Ordinary citizens and NGOs do not have the right o

direct access to the existing Court o Human and Peoples Rights or the

merged court.

In 2009, the AU decided to consider the possibility o empowering the

Court to try persons accused o international crimes (crimes against

humanity and war crimes).

i

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ngo a: Coalition or an Eective Arican Court

The Coalition or an Eective Arican Court on Human and Peoples Rights, a

network o NGOs and national human rights institutions, was ormed during

the frst conerence or the promotion o the Protocol to the Arican Charter on

Human and Peoples Rights establishing the Arican Court in Niamey, Niger in

May 2003. It has an ofce in Arusha, Tanzania.

The key purpose or its establishment is to have an eective and independent

Arican Court on Human and Peoples Rights in order to provide redress to

victims o human rights violations and strengthen the human rights protection

system in Arican and at domestic level.

The objectives o the Coalition include the ratifcation o the Protocol

establishing the Arican Court on Human and Peoples Rights by all AU

Member States; enhance transparency in the nomination and election o

judges; develop capacity or litigation and promote direct access by individuals

to take cases to the Court directly.

The Coalition has contributed to the creation o the Arican Court o Justice

and Human Rights to ensure that the merged court does not compromise the

human rights element. A number o Member States have ratifed the Protocol

establishing the Court as a result o the Coalitions advocacy.

Coalition or an Eective Arican Court: www.aricancourtcoalition.org!


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Economic, Social and Cultural Council(ECOSOCC)

ECOSOCC is an advisory organ designed to give civil society organisations

(CSOs) a voice within the AU institutions and decision-making processes.

It is provided or in the Constitutive Act, but does not have its own

protocol, relying rather on Statutes approved by the Assembly that have a

lesser legal status and can more easily be amended. ECOSOCC is made

up o civil society organisations rom a wide range o sectors including

labour, business and proessional groups, service providers and policythink tanks, both rom within Arica and the Arican diaspora.

The ECOSOCC Statutes provide or our main bodies:

A 150-member General Assembly, made up o 144 elected>

representatives (two rom each Member State, ten operating

at regional level, eight at continental level and 20 rom the

diaspora) and six representatives o CSOs nominated by the

AU Commission, to be the highest decision-making body o the

organ.A 15-member standing committee with representatives rom the>

fve regions o Arica to coordinate the work o the organ.

Ten sectoral cluster committees or eeding opinion and inputs>

into the policies and programmes o the AU.

A fve-person credentials committee or determining the>

eligibility o CSO representatives to contest elections or

participate in the processes o the organ.

The criteria established by the ECOSOCC Statutes or membership include

that candidates should:

Be national, regional, continental or Arican diaspora CSOs,>

without restriction to undertake regional or international

activities.

Have objectives and principles that are consistent with the>

principles and objectives o the Union.

Be registered in a Member State o the Arican Union and/>or meet the general conditions o eligibility or the granting o

observer status to non-governmental organisations.

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Show proo that the ownership and management o the CSO>

is made up o not less than 50 per cent o Aricans or Arican

diaspora.

Show that the resources o the organisation derive at least 50 per>

cent rom contributions o the members o the organisation.

The requirements on unding rom membership contributions mean that

many Arican NGOs are not eligible or membership o ECOSOCC.

Interim ECOSOCC structures were established in 2005, under the

leadership o Interim Chairperson Wangari Maathai o Kenya. Elections

to the ECOSOCC structures were fnally held in 23 Arican states and

at continental level in late 2007. The eight members o the ECOSOCC

Assembly at continental level are the Pan-Arican Lawyers Union (PALU),

the Organisation o Arican Trade Union Unity (OATUU), the Pan-Arican

Employers Federation, the Arica IDP Voice, the Network o Arican

Peace Builders, and womens groups FEMNET, the Pan-Arican Womens

Organisation (PAWO) and Femmes Arica Solidarit (FAS).

Although elections had not been completed, the ofcial launch o the new

ECOSOCC General Assembly took place in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on

9 September 2008, under the presidency o Cameroonian lawyer Akere

Muna. The Assembly decided to resume the election process and invited

nominations or election to the Assembly rom the countries that had not

yet chosen members. In December 2008, the ECOSOCC Assembly held

a meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, to discuss a strategic plan or the organ and

begin a review o the ECOSOCC Statutes.

The CIDO ofce in the AU Commission acts as secretariat or ECOSOCC.

ECOSOCC ofcers have the potential to be a critical link or civil society to

the AU. As ull delegates to the AU summits, they can attend all meetings,including closed sessions, and are in a position to brie CSOs on key

issues tabled. ECOSOCC is required to submit a report on its activities to

the AU Assembly.

Webstes or ECOSOCC and CiDO:

www.arica-union.org/ECOSOCC/CIDO-en.htm

www.arica-union.org/root/AU/AUC/Departments/BCP/CIDO/cido.htm


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New Partnership or Aricas Development(NEPAD)

NEPAD is a programme or Aricas economic development that was frst

adopted in 2001 outside the structures o the OAU/AU. It was endorsed by

the frst AU summit in Durban in 2002. The NEPAD ounding document

champions good governance as a basic requirement or peace, security

and sustainable political and socio-economic development.

The NEPAD secretariat reports to the NEPAD Heads o State and

Government Implementation Committee (HSGIC), which usually meetsin the margins o AU summits and in turn reports to the Assembly. The

NEPAD Secretariat is based in Midrand, South Arica. Its activities are

unded by voluntary contributions rom Member States.

The initial plan o NEPAD adopts a three-pronged strategy or action:

establishing preconditions or sustainable development (including peace

and security and improved governance); identiying priority sectors or

action (education, health, regional inrastructure, agriculture, market

access, and the environment); and mobilising resources to achieveNEPADs aims.

The NEPAD Secretariat works with the RECs, which are primarily

responsible or implementing the NEPAD programmes, to promote

eective cross-border collaboration on inrastructure, trade and other

economic initiatives. Among the NEPAD agship projects is the

Comprehensive Arica Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).

The extent o ciil society participation in NEPAD prograes

is largely dependent on the capacity o ciil society groups. A

ciil society desk at the NEPAD Secretariat proides a one-stop

ocal point. All prograes are ipleented in consultation

with the releant ciil society groups.

Pro. Wiseman L. Nkuhlu, ormer chie executive, NEPAD

NEPAD:

www.nepad.org i

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ngo a: The Arican Trade Network and the Global Call to Action Against

Poverty (GCAP)

Established in 1998, the Arica Trade Network (ATN) has 25 members rom 15

countries across Arica. The network has built a constituency to monitoring

and inuence assertive common Arican positions in negotiations with the

World Trade Organisation and the European Unions Economic Partnership

Agreements. The ATN has observer status with the Arican Union, and has

provided a means o increased interaction between civil society groups and

Arican governments, including at the annual Conerence o Arican Ministers

o Trade.

Arica Trade Network Secretariat (at Third World Network, Ghana): www.twnarica.org

The Global Call to Action Against Poverty is an international coalition ormed

in 2003 that seeks debt cancellation, air trade terms and a substantial aid

increase to all countries that have a budgetary shortall or realising the

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). A Pan-Arican steering committee

works with afliates in 33 Arican countries. GCAP organisers attended the

January 2005 AU summit and lobbied policy makers. In March that year they

participated in an AU experts meeting on debt and submitted a memorandum

to the NEPAD Secretariat beore the G8 meeting in July 2005 that had Arica asa principal ocus. On the international ront, GCAP members attended the July

G8 Heads o State meeting, the September UN Millennium Review Summit

and the December World Trade Organisation inter-ministerial conerence.

GCAP afliates remain active on the continent, engaging with the regional

economic communities, such as ECOWAS, and demanding action rom the

AU summits on poverty, access to education and health care, and action

against the government o Zimbabwe or human rights violations and ailure

to respect elections.

GCAP: www.whiteband.org!


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Arican Peer Review Mechanism (APRM)

The Arican Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) is a sel-monitoring mechanism

by which Member States o the AU can agree to independent review o

their ulflment o the governance commitments contained in Arican

and international standards. Initially established as part o the NEPAD

initiative, the APRM now operates independently under a Memorandum o

Understanding signed by Member States on a voluntary basis.

Signatories agree to conduct their own national sel-assessments

o compliance with a range o Arican and international governance

standards. These sel-assessments are supposed to be prepared through

a highly participatory research process that generates a national

conversation about governance challenges. They are reviewed by a

Panel o Eminent Persons who present their own independent report,

and this report is presented to a meeting o all the Heads o State and

Government who have signed the APRM memorandum (known as the

APR Forum), and discussed with the Head o State whose country is being

reviewed. Each review leads to a National Programme o Action to address

the problems identifed. States report each year on their progress in

implementing the Programme o Action to the APR Forum.

As o August 2009, 30 countries had voluntarily acceded to the

mechanism. Among them, 12 countries had completed their reviews

(Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Lesotho, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique,

Nigeria, Rwanda, South Arica and Uganda).

Member states o the APRM (August 2009)

Algeria, Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Republic o Congo,Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania,Mauritius, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, So Tome and Prncipe, Senegal, SierraLeone, South Arica, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, and Zambia.

The APRM Secretariat is located in Midrand, South Arica, close to the NEPADSecretariat. It is largely unded by those Member States that have signed the APRMmemorandum, with contributions rom external donors. There is a great deal oscope or civil society participation in the APRM process at national level; but much

less when it comes to the examination o the fnal report by Heads o State.

iOfcal APRM webste:

www.aprm-international.org

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ngo a: Advocacy with the APRM

AriMAP, the Arica Governance Monitoring and Advocacy Project o the

Open Society Institutes network o Arica oundations, has commissioned

reviews o the APRM process in almost all the countries where it has taken

place. Each report has ocused on civil society involvement in the process o

preparing the country sel-assessment reports, and the extent to which these

reports lived up to the participatory ideals o the APRM. The reports have

been launched in each country, with recommendations on strengthening civil

society engagement with the APRM and its ollow-up processes; and also

used in advocacy with the APRM Secretariat and Panel o Eminent Persons

at continental level. AriMAP has also worked with national civil society

organisations on submissions to the APRM country review missions.

Other civil society organisations that ollow the APRM closely and can provide

background inormation include: the South Arican Institute o International

Aairs (SAIIA), the Electoral Institute o Southern Arica (EISA) and

Partnership Arica Canada (PAC). SAIIAs 2008 study The African Peer Review

Mechanism: Lessons from the Pioneers provides a comprehensive analysis o the

APRM process in the frst countries to complete the reviews.

AriMAP: www.arimap.org

SAIIA: www.saiia.org.za

EISA: www.eisa.org.za

PAC: www.pacweb.org!


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Specialised Technical Committees (STC)

Both the Abuja Treaty and the Constitutive Act provide or the creation o

Specialised Technical Committees (STCs) made up o Arican ministers.

The STCs are to prepare projects and programmes o the Union and

submit them to the Executive Council, with the aim o reducing the

number o ad hoc ministerial meetings. These STCs had not been

created by the end o 2008, but in January 2009 the Assembly decided to

reconfgure them into a set o 14 (rather than the seven proposed by the

Constitutive Act), each with a thematic responsibility.

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Financial Institutions

The Constitutive Act provides or the AU to have three fnancial

institutions: an Arican Central Bank, Arican Monetary Fund; and

Arican Investment Bank. These institutions are not yet in place, though

discussions are underway with a view to establishing them. The Statutes

o the Arican Investment Bank were ormally adopted at the June 2009 AU

summit and the Protocol establishing the bank opened or ratifcation by

Member States.

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Funding o the Arican Union

There are three main sources o revenue or the AU. They are:

Contributions by Member States according to a scale o>

assessment approved by the Executive Council

Additional voluntary contributions by Member States to the>

solidarity und

Funds made available by external partners>

Five o Aricas wealthiest Member States each contribute 15 per cento the assessed contributions: Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Nigeria and South

Arica. These states are particularly inuential in AU decision-making. The

remaining 25 per cent is paid by the other Member States.

The approved budget or the Arican Union or 2009 was US$ 164.3 million,

to be split between Member State assessed contributions o $ 93.8 million,

and development partners contributions o $ 57.4 million (and the

remainder to be fnanced rom previous budget surpluses).

The Chairperson o the Commission acts as chie accounting ofcer tothe AU and submits the budget o the Union to the organs o the AU or

approval. The budget is adopted by the Assembly on the recommendation

o the Executive Council and ater consideration by the PRC.

The AU can and does impose sanctions on countries that are in arrears

with their subscriptions. These sanctions range rom limited access to

acilities to suspension o voting rights. It is common or several countries

at one time not to have the right to vote at AU meetings because their

dues are not paid; this suspension o voting rights also extends to thatcountrys members o the Pan-Arican Parliament. Some countries in

fnancial difculty, such as those emerging rom conict, have successully

sought exemption rom paying their subscriptions, or a reduction in the

amount.

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Regional Economic Communities (RECs)

Both the 1980 Lagos Plan o Action or the Development o Arica and the

1991 Abuja Treaty to establish the Arican Economic Community proposed

the creation o Regional Economic Communities (RECs) as the basis or

Arican integration, with a timetable or regional and then continental

integration to ollow. There are eight RECs recognised by the AU, each

established under a separate regional treaty. The membership o many

o the communities overlaps, and their rationalisation has been under

discussion or several years, and ormed the theme o the 2006 Banjul

summit. At the July 2007 Accra summit the Assembly adopted a Protocol

on Relations between the Arican Union and the Regional Economic

Communities. This protocol is intended to acilitate the harmonisation o

policies and ensure compliance with the Abuja Treaty and Lagos Plan o

Action time rames.

The RECs can be important ora or civil society activism both because o

their importance in their own regions and because they have a voice in

the discussions o the Arican Union. The Economic Community o West

Arican States (ECOWAS) has the most ormalised parallel civil society

body, known as the West Arica Civil Society Forum (WACSOF).

Many o the RECs have their own courts, including ECOWAS, SADC and

the EAC. Ordinary citizens and civil society organisations have the right

to bring cases directly to these courts, and there have been important

decisions rom both the ECOWAS and SADC courts in avour o human

rights principles. The East Arican Court o Justice has also ruled on issues

relating to the composition o the East Arican Legislative Assembly.

The eght RECs recognsed b the AU:

The Arab Maghreb Union (UMA)

The Common Market or Eastern and Southern Arica (COMESA)

The Community o Sahel-Saharan States (CEN-SAD)

The East Arican Community (EAC)

The Economic Community o Central Arican States (ECCAS)

The Economic Community o West Arican States (ECOWAS)

The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD)

The Southern Arica Development Community (SADC)

See Annexure 2 for a complete list of REC membership and objectives, and links to their websites.

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PART TWOINFLUENCINGAU DECISIONS & POLICIES

> The AU decision-making process > Civil society engagement with the AU Organs

> NGO observer status with the AU

> Accessing inormation

> Inuencing national-level decisions on AU proposals

> AU Summits


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38 part 2: influencing au decisions & policies

Ciil society organisations in Arica know the procedures o

the UN, EU and een USAID, ut they hae not spent tie

learning aout their own continental organisation, the Arican

Union.

Arican NGOs rush to Genea and New York or eetings. Its

tie they inested in the Arican Union. We ust restructure

our unding to allow or their participation in the Arican

Union.

Comments rom civil society activists


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39part 2: influencing au decisions & policies

The AU decision-making process

Decisions o the Arican Union Executive Council and Assembly are the

result o work done months beore each summit by the Commission and

other organs, and in decision-making processes within individual member

states. The majority o proposals presented to the Assembly have already

been largely agreed beore they are tabled at a summit.

Documents adopted by the Assembly usually start lie as a policy proposal

rom one o the AU Commissions departments, rom another AU organ or

rom a Member State. These proposals are debated in an experts meeting,

whose members are nominated by Member States, and then in a meeting

called or the relevant Ministers rom Member States to approve or amend

the experts proposals. With the exception o decisions with implications

or the budget which are then considered by the PRC, the fnal documents

rom the ministerial meeting will go directly to the Executive Council and/

or Assembly or adoption.

The PRC is reluctant to recoend proposals that hae notgone through the expert group eeting. They are oten sent

ack.

Arican Union ofcial

Sometimes, this decision-making process is not ollowed exactly. This is

the case when an item is urgently added to the AU summit agenda.

tps s: Entry points or civil society

For every conerence planned, there has been a planning committee.

For every date agreed, there has been a larger calendar o events.

For every paper presented, there has been a process or choosing issues and

speakers.For every list o participants, there has been a discussion about who should

attend.

For every speech read out, there has been a speechwriter looking or ideas.!

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the au Policy cycle

Stage Forum Descrpton NGO Acton

1 Member State orAU Commssonproposal

Proposals are introducedby Member States or adepartment or directorate othe AU Commission, or arereerred to the Commissionby the Executive Council

Familiarise yoursel with annualplans and summit decisionsSuggest proposals to MemberStatesOer technical assistance andrelevant inormation to dratdocumentsOrganise brainstorming sessions

2 Expertsgroup meetng

Most AU policy documents,treaties and programmes o

action are scrutinised by apanel o experts appointedby the government and theAU Commission

Seek invitations or nominateexperts

Interact with individual expertsOer to write short briefng papersFacilitate meetingsVolunteer to drat reportsBrie ACHPR special rapporteurs

3 Mnstersmeetng

Ater the panel o experts,a proposal is submitted toministers

Seek invitation to be part odelegation or lobby in themeetings marginsBrie ministers and ofcials whilein home country

Share position papers

Talk to the press at national levelwhat the proposal means

4 PRC ull meetngor subcommttee

Ater the ministerialmeeting, policy documentswith budgetary implicationsgo to the PRC and itssubcommittees

Brie chair, members and regionalcaucusesOer suggestions on ways to undthe proposalGive regular briefngs on yourissues to PRC members toestablish credibility

5 ExecutveCouncl

Ater adopting a proposal,the PRC orwards it tothe Executive Council oMinisters. Some decisionsare only adopted atExecutive Council level

Highlight negative consequenceso not adopting proposalBrie the press on importance oissuesBrie regional caucus meetingsBrie delegations and regionalcaucuses

6 Assembl I approved by the ExecutiveCouncil, and wherenecessary, a decision willbe sent to the Assembly orfnal adoption

I issue not decided, continue togather supportI agreed, congratulategovernments or taking bold andpositive stepsSet up a monitoring mechanism


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Civil society engagement with the AU Organs

There are our main ways in which civil society organisations engage the AU:

insttutonal spaces1.

Members o ECOSOCC have an ofcial place in AU structures

invted spaces2.

Any organisation may be invited to attend AU activities

Created spaces3.

Organising autonomous activities related to AU issues and

processes

Jont spaces4.

Organising joint activities with AU organs

In addition to being members o the newly established ECOSOCC, NGOs

may also apply or observer status with the AU (see below). Others

have ollowed a dierent route and have signed memorandums o

understanding with the AU Commission to provide technical assistance.

Among these organisations are the International Institute or Democracy

and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), the European Centre or

Development and Policy Management (ECDPM), and Oxam GB.

Perhaps the most powerul initiatives, however, have been the independent

advocacy eorts organised by civil society coalitions on particular policy

issues (see the case studies throughout this Guide).

I dont ind ciil society trying to infuence our work ut or

goodness sake, spell y nae correctly!

Ambassador and ormer chairperson,

Permanent Representative Committee

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tps s: Basic steps or civil society organisations seeking

to lobby the AU

Find out which countries are members o the bureau elected to guide AU

processes during the year. Meet with them and present your arguments

or your issue being on the agenda o the next summit or the one ater.

Ask their advice on what would be needed or an agenda item to be

agreed.

Find out which country is the current dean o each regional group and

the position o the region on critical issues. Meet with the ambassador o

that country in Addis Ababa, together with representatives o NGOs rom

that region, present your viewpoint and fnd out where you stand.

Make sure that you express your advocacy messages within the

ramework o AU policies and standards and not only the international

ones.

Try to identiy which countries are likely to wield the greatest inuence

or and against an issue o concern. Make contact with NGOs in those

countries to strategise on ways to inuence their positions.

Where there are divided opinions among AU Member States, consider

which countries might be able to broker a compromise, given their

historical position, current inuence or other actors. Meet with that

countrys ambassador and see what may be done.

Find out what is the position o the fve countries that together contribute

75 per cent o the AU budget. I members o the big fve budget

contributors are hostile, seek to mobilise other countries who may have

inuence with them, or work even harder to create a critical mass o

smaller countries whose opinion they will fnd hard to oppose.

Put together a mapping o the positions taken by Member States

and regions on important issues to help identiy the most important

countries to target and use to strategise with your allies.

Establish and maintain cordial relations with sta o the AU Commission

and diplomatic representatives o Member States based in Addis Ababa,

or work with organisations which have established relations.

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NGO observer status with the AU

The July 2005 AU summit held in Sirte, Libya revised the criteria and

procedures or granting observer status with the Arican Union to non-

governmental organisations (NGOs).

NGOs seeking observer status must be registered in an Arican state,

managed by a majority o Arican citizens or diaspora, and must derive at

least two-thirds o their income rom membership contributions.

NGOs with observer status undertake to hold regular consultations with

the AU and submit a report every three years on their cooperation withthe AU. They have access to the open sessions o summit meetings, and

may be invited to participate in sessions o closed meetings relevant to

their area o interest. So ar, 49 Arican NGOs have been granted observer

statues with the AU.

NGOs have called or the amendment o these rules, particularly the

requirement that organisations seeking observer status must have two-

thirds unding rom their own members. CIDO has been tasked to review

the observer status procedures.

Crtera to obtan observer status wth the Arcan Unon:

registration in an AU Member State

in operation or at least three years

a democratically adopted constitution

management made up o a majority o Arican citizens or members o

Arican diaspora

basic resources derived at least two-thirds rom membership contributions

respect and application o non-discrimination principles

Applcaton procedure:

applications must be submitted six months prior to the Executive Council

meetings

diaspora organisations require reerences rom two Member States and an

NGO recognised by the AU

organisations working on similar issues are encouraged to apply or observer

status as a coalition or joint committee

Crtera or grantng Arcan Unon Observer Status to Non-GovernmentalOrgansatons (NGOs) avalable at the AU webste:

www.arica-union.org/Summit/JULY%202005/ i

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Accessing inormation

The major obstacle to engaging with the AU is the lack o publicly

available, up-to-date and useul inormation. Though the AU website has

improved, many documents are not posted there until they are already

fnalised, too late or civil society organisations to comment on them.

Member States receive summit documents through their embassies in

Addis Ababa. Foreign Ministry and embassy ofcials can thereore be a

good source o documents that the AU Commission itsel has not yet

made available.

The websites and mailing lists in Annexure 3 also provide useul sources

o inormation.

tps s: Understanding a countrys interest in the AU and potential

points o leverage

Know your history and politics! Consider the countrys strategic political

and economic interests in the AU and on a particular issue. What

positions has the government taken and which other Member States has

the country worked with or opposed in the past? Tailor your advocacy

message with this analysis in mind.

Find out whether the country takes a strong position on an issue o

interest which may mean that its stance is inexible. I it has not yet

ormed a position or has a marginal interest in the issue it may be more

open to education, advocacy and inuence by NGOs.

Is the country preparing to host any important upcoming AU meetings

or seeking to chair the AU? I so, it may be reluctant to antagonise other

Member States or take controversial positions. Alternatively, it may be

willing to join coalitions that it would not usually have an interest in,

which could give a point o entry.

Are the countrys AU dues ully paid up? I not, it has no voting rights.

Has the country made any contributions to the AU beyond paying

its membership dues, such as supplying troops or peace-keepingoperations? I so, it is likely to have an important voice in matters to do

with that subject area, and more inuence generally.

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part2


Find out about internal processes through which the government

prepares or summits and ministerial meetings at national level,

including which ministries are likely to be involved in decisions on

particular policies. Make contact with those ministries and meet withofcials to fnd out what preliminary positions are prepared, whether they

are exible and how you may be able to inuence them. I there is conict

between two ministries, fnd out which one is most likely to support

your view, and provide briefng papers or other materials to help them

persuade the others.

Find out about which parliamentary committee is responsible or the

AU and meet with its members to get them interested in the issues that

are on the AU agenda and put your viewpoint. Identiy the fve members

o parliament chosen as members o the Pan-Arican Parliament

and maintain contacts with them: they can be a bridge between the

continental and national levels or your advocacy.

Find out which national NGOs and journalists regularly ollow the AU

or might be interested in the governments position on particular AU

decisions and brie them on the AU agenda and your priorities.

When a Head o State is chair o the AU, or a national is a high

level ofcial, use the opportunity to: call on the State to ratiy all AU

conventions and protocols and call or the domestication o these

treaties and other relevant legal instruments and policy norms; submit

reports, through the relevant PRC committee, on the States progress in

implementing AU decisions at the national level; and raise issues that

require the AUs attention with the States representatives at continental

and national level. !


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Infuencing national-level decisions onAU proposals

Not eerything happens at suits theseles.

They are not a true refection o the AU.

CSO activist

Every decision taken by the AU must be endorsed by a majority o Member

States. Lobbying in national capitals is thereore critical to getting a policyadopted at continental level.

The civil law and common law countries have slightly dierent institutional

structures and traditions in relation to handling o international relations,

including the Arican Union. The civil law countries usually have a legal

ramework setting out the operational responsibilities o the dierent

government departments, whereas these arrangements tend to be more

inormal in the common law countries. In all cases, however, the Ministry

o Foreign Aairs and the Ofce o the President play the most importantroles. Nearly all Ministries o Foreign Aairs have an Arica, AU or

multilateral relations unit.

In addition, the individual ministries responsible or the substantive

issues under discussion (justice, health, education, trade, energy, etc.) are

consulted about any proposals aecting their responsibilities. They will be

invited by the AU to send representatives to the ministerial meetings that

discuss and endorse policy documents prepared by an expert group.

The sequence o events or all states in preparing or summits at nationallevel is usually as ollows:

civil law (francoPhone and luSoPhone) countrieS

The Ministry o Foreign Aairs AU Branch receives the summit1.

agenda rom its mission in Addis Ababa and discusses it with

the Legal Aairs Branch, the International Organisations Branch

and, according to the importance o the summit, the MinistrysGeneral Secretariat and Ofce o the Minister.

A document incorporating the meetings output and comments2.

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part2


rom the Permanent Representative to the AU are presented to

the Minister.

The ministry dispatches technical documents to the line3.

ministries or each item on the summit agenda and requests

comments.The ministry organises consultations in collaboration with the4.

Ofce o the President and the relevant departments o the

Ofce o the Prime Minister to prepare act sheets or each item

on agenda that is o interest.

A fle containing the act sheets and drat position papers is5.

presented to the minister or approval.

The papers are then submitted to the President to obtain his6.

political position on each o the proposals.The permanent representative in Addis Ababa continues to7.

update the ministry on agend

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