Angola President Lourenco is new AU chairperson

Angolan President João Lourenço is the new chairperson of the African Union (AU), succeeding Mauritania’s Mohamed Cheikh El Ghazouani, who has held the position since February last year.

Lourenço will serve a one-year term, as per AU regulations, and will be deputised by Burundi, Ghana, and Tanzania as the first, second, and third vice chairs, respectively.

Mauritania will serve as the rapporteur for the year.

The AU chairmanship rotates among Africa’s five geographical regions, with Angola assuming the role for the first time.

Lourenço takes charge amid pressing peace and security challenges across the continent, alongside an ambitious development agenda.

“We will prioritise infrastructure, including airports, ports, and railways. We will also improve power supply and address key issues affecting the living conditions of our people,” he said in his acceptance speech at the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on Saturday, February 15.

Calling for cooperation from member states, Lourenço vowed to tackle conflicts, terrorism, climate change, and disease outbreaks such as Marburg, Ebola, and cholera.

This year’s AU theme is: “Justice for Africans and People of African Descent through Reparations.”

Difference between AU and AUC chairmanship

The AU chairmanship and the African Union Commission (AUC) chairmanship are distinct roles.

The AU chairperson is a sitting Head of State elected by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government for a one-year term.

The position rotates annually among the five African regions.

Former South African President Thabo Mbeki was the first AU chairperson in 2002. Since then, the chairmanship has rotated among East, North, Southern, Central, and West Africa.

The role of the AU chairperson is to represent the continent in global forums such as the G7 and G20 summits and chair the biannual AU Assembly meetings. The role also involves mediating crises within Africa.

The AUC chairperson, on the other hand, is elected by the AU Assembly and serves a renewable four-year term.

The AUC chairperson heads the Commission, which functions as the AU’s secretariat and is responsible for providing operational support to AU organs and assisting member states in implementing AU programs.

Kenya is fielding a candidate—Raila Odinga—for the AUC chairmanship for the second time. In 2017, Amina Mohammed lost to Chad's Moussa Faki.