Malabo, Equatorial Guinea | — The 47th Ordinary Session of the African Union (AU) Executive Council opened today alongside the Seventh Mid-Year Coordination Meeting (7MYCM), focusing on unity, integration, and development.
Ministers are reviewing the AU’s 2025 theme: “Justice for Africans and People of African Descent Through Reparations.” Key issues include financial reports, African candidatures in global institutions, Agenda 2063 progress, and treaty ratification challenges.
Two AU Commissioners, Economic Development (ETTIM) and Education (ESTI), will also be elected.
AU Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf highlighted major challenges: political conflicts, low financial contributions, and humanitarian crises in Sudan, DRC, Somalia, and the Sahel. He urged states to boost funding, especially through the Peace Fund.
Voluntary contributions stand at only 0.7 per cent; African financial institutions contribute 5.6 per cent. Yet, positive steps include the Rwanda–DRC agreement and Gabon’s return to constitutional rule.
On the AfCFTA, Youssouf called for faster protocol ratification to make the free trade area fully operational.
Angolan Foreign Minister Tete Antonio, Council Chair for 2025, stressed the need for legal implementation of AU decisions. “Agenda 2063 must move from aspiration to action,” he said.
UN Under-Secretary-General Claver Gatete warned that Africa’s 3.3 per cent growth lags behind pre-pandemic levels. He urged real implementation of AfCFTA to boost trade and overcome structural weaknesses.
Equatorial Guinea’s Foreign Minister Simeon Oyono Esono Angue, host of the event, emphasized unity amid shared crises: conflict, climate change, food insecurity, and inequality. He called for a coordinated African response.
The 7MYCM continues through July 13, bringing AU members, RECs, and RMs together to review integration progress and define clearer roles for collaboration under Agenda 2063.