Venue of October AU Summit changed to Ethiopia

The hopes of the Interim President of Chad, Mahamat Idriss Déby of getting the endorsement of the African Union for his rule have been dashed after the continental body chose Addis Ababa, Ethiopia over Chad for its next summit.

Seen as a diplomatic blow, the change in venue is part of the initiatives to up the pressure on the Chadian junta, which has failed to amend controversial clauses of the charter serving as the rulebook for the 18-month transition period supposed to lead to a democratic future

It would be recalled that H.E President Felix-Antoine Tshisekedi, President of the Democratic Republic of Congo in his capacity as Chairperson of the African Union (AU), had convened a teleconference meeting of the Bureau of the Assembly of the African Union Heads of State and Government on 24 June 2021.

Following a presentation by the Acting Secretary to the Commission at that meeting, the Bureau of the Assembly considered and endorsed the recommendation by the Permanent Representatives’ Committee (PRC) to postpone the June/July 2021 Summit meetings of the 39^th Ordinary Session of the Executive Council to 13 – 14 October 2021, while the Mid-Year Coordination Meeting between the African Union, the Regional Economic Communities and Regional Mechanisms: 16 October 2021 in Ndjamena, Republic of Chad.

The 42^nd Ordinary Session of the Permanent Representative Committee (PRC) is ongoing in Addis Ababa from September 27 to October 1, 2021 to prepare the agenda and draft decisions for the Executive Council.

Members of the Bureau of the Assembly had raised issues pertaining to the political situation in Chad regarding the holding of the 2021 Summit. While wishing increasing stability in Chad and the successful implementation of the Transition Charter, Members suggested an alternative solution (Plan B), to optionally be considered.

They also decided that a second Evaluation mission to be conducted in order to assess the security and health situation in Ndjamena, Republic of Chad for a better holding of the Summit in this country.

The Bureau accordingly decided that an extended Bureau of the Assembly meeting with the Chairs of the REC’s closer to the time shall review and decide on the format and venue of the sessions of the Executive Council and the Mid-Year Coordination Meeting between the AU, the REC’s and the RMs, based on the assessment of security situation and the Technical advice of the Africa CDC on health related requirements.