Africa in Crisis: AU Chair Mahmoud Youssouf Under Fire as Conflicts Rage Across Continent

Africa is on fire. From Sudan to Chad, from the Democratic Republic of Congo to Ethiopia and Eritrea, the continent is a battlefield of conflicts that threaten to consume entire nations.

Which African countries are currently in conflict?

Sudan is engulfed in war, Chad is on the verge of collapse, the DRC is spiralling into chaos, and Ethiopia is preparing for a confrontation with Eritrea over the Assab port.

Eritrea, in turn, is ready to carve Tigray out of Ethiopia, a move they are fully capable of executing.

In Nigeria, terrorism has found a home. Armed groups operate with impunity, crossing into Cameroon and the broader region to unleash terror before returning to their safe havens.

South Sudan is boiling with instability, and the entire region is a ticking time bomb. The danger is real, the suffering is immense, and the threats are growing by the day.

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Yet in the midst of this turmoil, the African Union Commission stands still. The very institution that should be leading the charge for peace, stability, and security has become a shadow of itself.

Why should Mahamoud Youssouf resign?

The new chairperson, Mahmoud Youssouf, elected after a tough competition with Kenya's former prime minister Raila Odinga on February 15, has failed to rise to the occasion.

While regional blocs like the Southern African Development Community and the East African Community attempt to mediate in Congo, the AU remains silent, its structures ignored, and its presence reduced to irrelevance.

Instead of leading peace efforts, instead of rallying Africa’s diplomatic weight, the chairperson is focused on mundane administrative affairs in Addis Ababa, opening cafeterias and concentrating on nepotism.

He has made the AU dysfunctional. His leadership lacks authority, his influence is absent, and his failure is evident.

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Africa cannot afford an idle chief diplomat. The AUC chairperson is not a ceremonial figure but the driver of the continent’s peace and security agenda.

He must be at the forefront, engaging warring factions, negotiating ceasefires, mobilising regional leaders, and pressing for solutions.

The consequences of weak leadership at the AU are dire. Millions of Africans continue to suffer in conflict zones while Youssouf fails to act decisively. His inaction is not just a bureaucratic shortcoming but a betrayal of the people he is meant to serve.

If Youssouf cannot step up and take control of the crisis, then he must step down. The African Union cannot be held hostage by weak leadership.

The continent needs a chairperson who commands respect, who takes action, and who refuses to watch Africa burn from the comfort of an office in Addis. If he cannot deliver, then he must go.

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Africa deserves a leader who will fight for peace not one who watches from the sidelines as the continent burns.

The author is Billy Mijungu, a political analyst and commentator on Kenyan politics and a 2022 Senate candidate for Migori county.

The views expressed here are the writer’s and do not in any way represent the position of TUKO.co.ke.

Proofreading by Jackson Otukho, copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.

Source: TUKO.co.ke