“Every African leader in the group unequivocally condemned (…) the wave of changing governments in violation of the constitution,” Bankole, Adeweyi said during a press conference held on the last day of the African Union summit held in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.
This position comes as the African Union, which was formed 20 years ago, has not taken decisive decisions in the face of coups or coup attempts in Africa over the past eighteen months, while the seizure of power occupied a prominent place on the summit agenda.
While the union moved to suspend Burkina Faso and Mali after military coups, it is not clear if this has any effect on the new leaders.
A bigger African role
During their meeting at the African Union summit on Saturday, African leaders called for the union to have a greater role in the international arena, amid indications that it is facing difficulty in coordinating positions on a number of challenges, ranging from coups to the “Covid-19” pandemic.
At the opening session, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, told the leaders that the security situation in Africa required the bloc to take a new approach, and called for “more effective African solidarity”.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres addressed the leaders via a video link and renewed his calls for a ceasefire in the Ethiopian conflict that erupted in November 2020 and claimed thousands of lives.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed used his speech to call for Africa’s permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council.
