Monthly Digest on the AUPSC - December 2021
Amani Africa
Date | December, 2021
In December, Ethiopia was the Chair of the African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council (PSC). The provisional program of work of the month envisaged four sessions. Following the removal of one of the planned sessions and the addition of another not initially envisaged in the provisional program of work, the PSC convened four during the month. Although the initial programme of work envisaged a session on the relationship between South Sudan and Sudan including the status of Abyei, the session did not take place. On the other hand, the PSC added as new agenda to its program of work the consideration of the conclusions of the high-level seminar held in Oran, Algeria.
Monthly Digest on the AUPSC - December 2021
Amani Africa
Date | December 2021
In December, Ethiopia was the Chair of the African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council (PSC). The provisional program of work of the month envisaged four sessions. Following the removal of one of the planned sessions and the addition of another not initially envisaged in the provisional program of work, the PSC convened four during the month. Although the initial programme of work envisaged a session on the relationship between South Sudan and Sudan including the status of Abyei, the session did not take place. On the other hand, the PSC added as new agenda to its program of work the consideration of the conclusions of the high-level seminar held in Oran, Algeria.
Provisional Programme of Work of the PSC for the Month of December 2021
Amani Africa
Date | December 2021
In December, Ethiopia will be the Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council (PSC). The PSC’s provisional programme of work for the month envisages two country specific sessions, one thematic session and the 15th annual joint consultative meeting between the PSC and United Nations Security Council (UNSC), which is expected to be preceded by the informal joint seminar. A joint retreat of the PSC and the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) is also scheduled to take place in Durban during the course of the month.
The first session of the month is expected to take place on 7 December and will assess the situation in Somalia and the status of the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) post-2021. At its 1037th and 1042nd sessions convened in October, Council endorsed option one of the Report of the AU Independent Assessment Team on AU’s Engagement in and with Somalia Post-2021. Option one of the report envisages the transitioning of AMISOM into AU-UN Multidimensional Stabilization Mission in Somalia. While AMISOM’s transitioning into such mission is favoured for providing predictability in terms of financing, the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) has voiced complete rejection of this option, stressing that it does not conform to the original plan envisaged under the Somalia Transitional Plan (STP). Following that, a delegation of the PSC visited Somalia on 9 November to consult with the FGS, representatives of AMISOM and other relevant stakeholders and determine ways for Council’s next steps in its support to Somalia. The upcoming session is hence expected to provide updates on the progress obtained in reaching an agreement between the AU and FGS on the nature and mandates of AMISOM post-2021, among other issues.
On 9 and 10 December, the PSC will consider the annual indicative programme for 2022, through email exchanges. The PSC Committee of Experts (CoE) will also be convening on 9 December to review the implementation of PSC decisions for the second half of 2021.
On 13 December, the PSC CoE will meet to consider the report on activities of the PSC and the state of peace and security in Africa, which is to be submitted to the AU Assembly at the upcoming AU Summit on January/February 2022.
The second substantive session of the month is scheduled to take place on 14 December. The session will be convened at the ministerial level and will address the interdependence between peace and security and development. In 2019, PSC had its first meeting on the same theme, at its 883rd ministerial session. It is to be recalled that at that session Council emphasised the intrinsic link between peace and security and development and called for the coordinated implementation of relevant AU frameworks, particularly the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) and African Governance Architecture (AGA). In light of that, Council requested the Chairperson of the AU Commission to submit annually a report on measures taken to enhance the collaboration and coordination between different departments of the AU Commission and AU Specialized Agencies to support the PSC. Council may follow up on this request at the upcoming session. It may also reiterate the concerns expressed at its 975th session over the growing peace and security threats to development in Africa, including the diversion of development financing to address security threats.
On 16 December, the PSC and UNSC will have their 6th informal joint seminar, ahead of the 15th annual consultative meeting scheduled to take place on 17 December. It is to be recalled that the 5th informal joint seminar took place on 29 September 2020, during which the two Councils discussed strengthening cooperation with a focus on improving working methods as well as Silencing the Guns in Africa. At the 14th annual consultative meeting convened on 30 September 2020 the two Councils considered country/region specific issues including Mali, the Sahel region and Somalia. In addition to following up on developments in these country and region specific situations, the upcoming joint consultative meeting may also consider other emerging peace and security situations.
Between 19 and 21 December the PSC will have a joint retreat with the APRM in Durban. This is in line with previous PSC decision of its 914th and 962nd sessions, which requested the AUC in close collaboration with the APRM secretariat to organize a joint retreat for the two organs.
The last session of the month is scheduled to take place on 28 December. The session will be a briefing on the relationship between South Sudan and Sudan, including the status of Abyei. Since Council’s last meeting on the status of Abyei, which took place on 24 November 2020, some positive developments have been observed in the relationship between the two Sudans. Regarding the contested status of the oil-rich region of Abyei, a significant progress has been the establishment of high-level committees on both sides to review past agreements and pave the way for negotiations aimed at settling the final status of Abyei. Council may take note of this progress at the upcoming session and encourage both sides to continue working towards negotiations. It may also follow up on the decisions of its previous (966th) session, including its request for the AU Commission to develop modalities for releasing the report on the killing of Chief Koul Deng Koul of the Ngok Dinka and to dispatch a sensitisation mission to Abyei to engage the local community on the report, with the aim of facilitating reconciliation.
Council’s provisional program of work for the month also indicates in footnotes the possibility of convening sessions on Chad, Guinea, Mali, and/or Sudan depending on the development of situations in one or more of these States.
Open Session on Implementation and Commemoration of UNSC Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security
Amani Africa
Date | 29 November, 2021
Tomorrow (29 November), the African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council (PSC) is set to convene its 1052nd session, which will be an open session to commemorate United Nations (UN) Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) and discuss its implementation in Africa.
Following the opening remarks of the PSC Chairperson of the month and Permanent Representative of Egypt to the AU, Mohamed Omar Gad, the AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security (PAPS), Bankole Adeoye, is expected to make a statement. Presentations are also expected from Bineta Diop, AU Special Envoy on WPS; Hanna Tetteh, Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG) and Head of UN Office to the AU (UNOAU); Head of Egyptian National Council of Women; a representative of FEMWISE and Helen Kezie-Nwoha, Director of the Women International Peace Centre (WIPC).
Tomorrow’s session is expected to focus on the impacts of Covid-19 pandemic on the implementation of UNSC Resolution 1325 in Africa. It is to be recalled that at its 918th session, the PSC raised concern over the pandemic’s impacts on peace and security efforts in the continent. At its 951st session where the PSC commemorated the 20th anniversary of UNSC Resolution 1325 and followed up on its implementation in Africa, it also specifically emphasised how Covid-19 has negatively impacted the realisation of the WPS agenda by exacerbating pre-existing challenges including vulnerabilities to human rights abuses and sexual and gender based violence (SGBV), particularly in the context of armed conflicts. Even before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, major security challenges threatened many parts of Africa. Terrorism and violent extremism, intercommunal violence, as well as socio-political tensions were already on an upsurge, deteriorating economies and causing serious humanitarian crises across the continent.
Women, already experiencing various forms of discrimination, violence and inequalities during the pre-pandemic period, are now confronted with these challenges disproportionately. As highlighted in a study conducted by UN Women, despite being excessively affected by the pandemic, women in multiple African countries are either unrepresented or underrepresented in decision-making processes related to Covid-19 response. This demonstrates the entrenched marginalisation of women in the policymaking sphere, a prominent challenge to the full realisation of UNSC Resolution 1325.
In addition to the pandemic’s immediate effect on women, its socio-economic impacts are also likely to impose more long-term challenges. With majority of employed women in Africa working in the informal sector, more uncertainty and unpredictability is introduced to their livelihoods as a result of the pandemic. Not only will this disempower women, it also curtails their effective contributions to the prevention, management and resolution of conflicts, a main tenet of the WPS agenda and core pillar of UNSC Resolution 1325.
Another challenge to the implementation of UNSC Resolution 1325, which has emerged due to Covid-19 pandemic, is the possibility of budget cuts for funding the WPS agenda and non-governmental institutions promoting and advancing it. As a result of various governments’ decisions to invest more on measures aimed at containing the pandemic and the reprioritisations of initiatives to make more budgets available to respond to the public health emergency, there is concern that the WPS agenda may not receive the policy attention it deserves. While such decisions may be justified in light of the spread and impact of Covid-19, this may also risk undermining the gains made so far in advancing the WPS agenda. More importantly, the development of response mechanisms, which fail to integrate the WPS agenda, could disregard women’s experiences and their specific needs, particularly in the context of conflicts. Women have also been at the frontlines responding to the pandemic and playing instrumental role in times of crisis.
In addition to reflecting on the impacts of Covid-19 on realisation of UNSC Resolution 1325, tomorrow’s session also presents Council the option to discuss updates on Member States’ implementation of the resolution. It is to be recalled that at the 25th AU Summit convened in June 2015, Member States decided to develop, implement and report on national and regional action plans for the implementation of the resolution. Since then, 30 AU States have adopted national action plans, while six regional economic communities (RECs) have adopted regional action plans, according to a 2020 report of the AU Special Envoy on WPS. In addition to the possible adoption of national and regional action plans by more Member States and RECs, AU’s Special Envoy on WPS may update Council on the progresses and challenges in the implementation of the WPS agenda, particularly in the context of Covid-19 pandemic, in those Member States and regions where national and regional action plans have already been adopted.
At Council’s 951st session one of the main achievements noted with regards to implementing the WPS agenda in Africa was the Second Report on the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda in Africa, using the Continental Results Framework (CRF) adopted by the Peace and Security Council in May 2018. The framework is aimed at monitoring implementation of various commitments made by AU Member States, relevant to WPS. One of the significant contributions of the CRF is that its monitoring and assessment of implementation is based on indicators, which are tailored to African context and AU policies including Agenda 2063 specifically aspiration number 6 and the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol). Accordingly, it looks into socio-economic threats, political factors, and emerging security threats such as terrorism and violent extremism through the lens of WPS. It is important therefore to employ the CRF to assess the impacts of Covid-19, which not only qualifies as an emerging threat to peace and security on the continent, but also poses socio-economic threats.
The expected outcome of the session is a press statement. Council may commend the progress made around the implementation of UNSC Resolution 1325. The PSC may also highlight the need to address challenges that affect the vital role of women in peace processes. Council may call on Member States as well as relevant regional and international actors to ensure that all measures adopted in response to the Covid-19 pay particular attention to the needs and experience of women. It may emphasise the importance of continued support to the WPS agenda and appeal to relevant actors to ensure that the necessary funds for its implementation are not reduced due to the pandemic. It may also call on Member States and RECs which have not yet adopted national and regional action plans for the implementation of UNSC Resolution 1325 to do so and to mobilize necessary funds for its implementation. Member States may also be urged to ensure compliance with legal commitments relevant for the implementation of WPS agenda. The PSC may reiterate its previous request to the Commission to prepare the report that evaluates the implementation of its previous decisions to undertake a stocktaking exercise and to assess the level of implementation of the WPS agenda.
Climate Change and Peace and Security in Africa
Amani Africa
Date | 26 November, 2021
Tomorrow (26 November), African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council (PSC) is set to convene its 1051st session to discuss climate change and security under the theme: ‘Climate Change and Security: the Need for an Informed Climate-Security-Development Nexus for Africa’.
Tomorrow’s session is expected to proceed in open and closed segments. In the open session, following the opening remark by Mohamad Omar Gad, Permanent Representative of Egypt and the Chairperson of the PSC for the month of November, Bankole Adeoye, AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security (PAPS), is expected to make statement. Ambassador Josepha Sacko, AU Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment is also scheduled to deliver presentation. Statements by Hannah Tetteh, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Office to the AU, and Tanguy Gahoum, Chairperson of the Africa Group of Negotiators on Climate Change, are to follow the presentation. Wael Aboul Maged, Board Member of the Green Climate Fund, and Alastair McPhail, Ambassador of the United Kingdom in Addis Ababa may also deliver statements.
The PSC has increasingly addressed the issue of climate change and security in Africa and has become one of its standing agenda item with the decision of the Council to dedicate an annual session on the theme during its 585th session held on 30 March 2016. The Council has thus far convened about nine sessions including the latest one, 984th session on 9 March 2021 held at summit level. The Council also convened its 1043rd session on 29 October 2021 at the level of Heads of State and Governments specifically on natural disaster and human security. In several of these meetings, the Council not only expressed its concern over the adverse effects of climate change on socio-economic developments and security but also recognized the ‘inextricable link between climate change, peace and security in Africa’. A number of decisions have also been made by the PSC over the past years on climate change and security. Hence tomorrow’s sessions presents an opportunity to take stock of previous commitments including the study on the nexus between climate and security and the appointment of the Special Envoy on climate and security.
An important aspect of tomorrow’s session is to also reflect on how the PSC approaches the issue of climate and security. While the relationship between climate change and conflict is not direct, climate change may exacerbate existing vulnerabilities and tensions with an impact on the human and state security. In this sense, climate change is a ‘threat multiplier’ in conflict affected and fragile settings and a ‘potential triggers of inter-communal violence’ as highlighted in the 585th session of the Council.
The framing of the theme captures the mutually reinforcing linkages between climate change, security and development. Climate change threatens to reverse the economic gains made by the continent over the last decade and hinders progress towards realizing the Agenda 2063 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As noted in the concept note prepared for the session, climate change affects the delivery of sustainable development plans of African countries, which in turn ‘feed and exacerbate some of the active conflicts, and can contribute to the outbreak of new conflicts and/or the relapse of others’. In this context, PSC’s 585th session, for instance, underscored the need for member states to mainstream climate change in their national development agendas. Furthermore, the Council, in several of its meetings dedicated to the theme including the 984th session, highlighted on the need to mainstream the same in all AU’s activities particularly in early warning and conflict prevention efforts.
The presentations may shed light on the different policy and institutional frameworks as well as initiatives launched with the aim to address climate change and its impact on security and socio-economic developments in Africa. These include: Africa Adaptation Initiative (AAI), the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and Sahel, Africa Blue Economy Strategy, the Bamako Declaration on the Management of Natural Resources, and the three African Climate Commissions (the Island Climate Commission, the Congo Basin Commission, and the Sahel Climate Commission), in addition to Agenda 2063 and Silencing the Guns 2030 initiative. This year also witnessed further steps with the launch of Green Recovery Action Plan in July and Africa Climate Week in September while Libya, the last African country to do so, ratified the Paris Agreement in August.
Also of interest to the Council is the issue of providing predictable and sustainable source of climate financing. Africa bears the brunt of climate change despite producing less than 4% of the emissions responsible for climate change. Yet, the aspiration to build climate resilient and low-carbon development by African countries as outlined in their Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement requires a considerable as well as predictable funding. Despite some progress in terms of mobilizing and scaling up climate finance, the amount of funding flowing to the continent remains limited. Sources indicate that only few countries have been able to access the Green Climate Fund (GCF)—the single largest source of global climate finance—mainly because of the limited institutional and technical capacity to access and manage the available funds. In this connection, Sacko may brief the Council about the support that the Commission provides to member states particularly in relation to developing bankable projects. The other point the Council may need to follow up is its decision, at its 984th session, to establish an AU Special Fund for Climate Change. Most recent positive development Sacko is likely to mention is the launch of the Comprehensive Africa Climate Change Initiative (CACCI), a new partnership between the AU Commission and USAID to ‘reach the Paris Agreement goals of reducing carbon emissions and building long-term adaptation plans’.
Globally, climate and security is increasingly gaining traction. The the UN Security Council, through its Presidential Statement [SC 13189] adopted on 30 January 2018, acknowledged the link between climate change and violent conflicts in the context of West Africa and the Sahel region. Most recently, the UN Security Council convened a high-level open debate on the ‘Maintenance of International Peace and Security: Climate and Security’ in 23 September 2021.
As tomorrow’s session comes at the backdrop of the conclusion of UNFCCC COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK, it affords the Council the opportunity to take stock of major outcomes of COP26 and discuss on main priorities for COP27, which Egypt is going to host in 2022. The briefing by Tanguy Gahouma, AGN Chair, is likely to highlight Africa’s position and assessment of the conference. One of the issues high on the agenda for Africa at Glasgow was climate finance and adaptation. The pledge by developed countries decades ago to contribute $100 billion per year by 2020 to help developing countries to support adaptation and mitigation in developing countries was missed (in 2019, the total climate finance was estimated to be $79.6 billion, falling short of the $100 billion target). During the COP26, African negotiators sought to scale up this financing up to $1.3 trillion per year by 2030. Tanguy Gahouma may also highlight on other aspects of the negotiation including climate responsibility as well as transfer of technologies and capacity building.
The expected outcome of tomorrow’s session is a communiqué. Among others, the Council is likely to follow up on four important decisions it previously made. The first is the study on the nexus between climate change and peace and security in the continent pursuant to the decision at its 774th session. The second is on the progress in respect of the appointment of an AU Special Envoy for Climate Change and Security in line with the decision of the Council during its 774th session. The third is on AU Special Fund for Climate Change which the Council agreed to establish at its 984th session held this year in March at the Summit level, while the fourth is on the need to develop a ‘continental framework for proactively responding to the potential and real security threats posed by climate change to the continent’ as agreed during its 774th session. Given the interlinkage between climate change, security and development, the Council may reiterate its call for mainstreaming climate change in AU’s early warning, conflict prevention and Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Development undertakings. In this regard, the Council may further stress the need for coordination between the department of Political Affairs, Peace and Security as well as Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment. The Council is also expected to take note of the outcomes of COP26 and may further stress on the need to identify Africa’s priorities for the upcoming COP27 and support the work of the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change to better amplify African voices in climate negotiations.