Birthday with mixed feelings: African Union turns 60

Status: 05/25/2023 11:37 a.m

Exactly 60 years ago, African states came together to improve their relations. But today the African Union is divided, struggling with debt, poverty and conflict.

In Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa, where new skyscrapers are springing up on every corner, the site of the African Union seems almost like an oasis of calm. The construction work here has long since been completed. The Confederation resides in several buildings with lots of glass and marble. The magnificent building was built by the Chinese for 200 million dollars. In this case it is a gift.

Foreign investors and high debt

But many other infrastructure projects driven by China are contributing to the fact that the continent as a whole is highly indebted. This worries the new head of the African Union, President Azali Assoumani of the Comoros, at the beginning of his term in office.

“In 2022, overall growth was no more than three percent,” he said in his inaugural speech. At the same time, the birth rate on the continent is still very high, which is why states are required to expand social systems and infrastructure, Assoumani continued. “Twenty-two African countries are now in dire straits in terms of their debt, according to the World Bank, and account for a significant share of the continent’s external debt.”

“Dictators Chat Club”

Progress on credit, plus many trouble spots, such as recently in Sudan. The African Union is facing major challenges in its anniversary year. It is the successor to the “Organization for African Unity” that started 60 years ago. The confederation of states should bring the countries of the continent closer together. But he was quickly decried as the “chatter club of dictators” that produced many resolutions but had no assertiveness.

When the African Union took over in 2002, they wanted to do better. But it still falls short of its goals, says Victor Ochen from Uganda, the founder of an Africa-wide youth initiative for peace and progress.

“Today we have a completely divided continent. Some countries have chosen the path of democracy. Others are still stuck in the last century and are ruled by the wrong leaders,” says Ochen. All they care about is power and defeating their enemies. “That’s not how the continent progresses.”

Orientation towards Russia and China

Nevertheless, the world would make a mistake if Africa was not sufficiently involved in political decisions. The political leaders on the continent are also orienting themselves so strongly towards China or Russia because they feel neglected by the United Nations.

“The UN must try to make amends. They must clarify the question of whether Africa as a continent is good enough to join the UN Security Council. If they say no, they will lose Africa,” explains Ochen.

For years, the African states have wished for more participation in the international community.
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Scholz: Take the African Union into the G20

During a visit to Ethiopia three weeks ago, Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke out in favor of including the African Union in the G20 group of states. He was optimistic that there could be talks about this in the near future.

We must adapt to a world that will be multipolar. In which many countries of the Global South will be of great importance. Now is the time when we need to make a fresh start in terms of North-South relations. Which makes it possible to develop common perspectives with the many countries of the South on an equal footing.

Olaf Scholz, Federal Chancellor

Around 1.3 billion people already live on the African continent. The number could double in the next 30 years. A growth that could also give the African Union more weight as the mouthpiece of this population.

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