The summit comes amid an atmosphere charged with crises in most parts of the continent, which has suffered a lot from the state of instability.
Significant differences and disagreements emerged between member states on the issue of Israel’s admission as an observer in the African Union, as this was opposed by influential countries such as South Africa, Algeria and Nigeria, while other countries defended it as a kind of openness to common interests with the international community.
As expected, the summit agenda was dominated by the phenomenon of repeated coups, which amounted to more than 200 attempts during the past six decades, most of which succeeded in controlling power. The introductory sessions were also filled with extensive discussions on ways to eradicate poverty that covers a large part of the population of the continent, in addition to the problem of food insecurity that most of the continent’s population suffers from, in light of the rise in food prices by about 40 percent above the global average based on low income levels.
Despite the huge natural resources enjoyed by the African continent, most of which constitute an essential component of many heavy industries in Europe, China, the United States and Asia; However, the population of most countries of the continent did not enjoy any kind of security, political or economic stability, as more than 55 percent of the population lives below the poverty line; Countries such as Sudan, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Rwanda and Mali have also witnessed wars and civil strife that lasted for decades, claiming more than 13 million deaths and displacing about 33 million.
The past few months leading up to the summit have been turbulent across much of the continent; In addition to the occurrence of several coup attempts during the past few months, internal conflicts continued in Ethiopia, Somalia, Chad, Central Africa and a number of countries in the north of the continent.
Suleiman Awad, a professor of political science at Sudanese universities, believes that the African Union faces great difficulty in dealing with most crises, for logistical and other reasons related to the nature of international interactions with the continent’s problems, especially by China and Russia, which in most cases use the veto to stop many decisions in the UN Security Council.
Awad told Sky News Arabia that the African Union does not have the appropriate mechanisms that would enable it to resolve the chronic issues that have held the countries of the continent for decades and increased turmoil and poverty rates among the population.
