Africa: A Changing Leadership

Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30,300,000 km² (11,700,000 sq mi) including its adjacent islands, it covers 5.9% of the Earth's total surface area, and 20.3% of the total land area. With over 840,000,000 people (as of 2005) in 61 territories, it accounts for more than 12% of the world's human population.

Separated from Europe by the Mediterranean Sea, it is joined to Asia at its northeast extremity by the Isthmus of Suez (transected by the Suez Canal), 130 km (80 miles) wide. The length of coastline is 26,000 km (16,100 miles) and the absence of deep indentations of the shore is shown by the fact that Europe, which covers only 9,700,000 km² (3,760,000 square miles), has a coastline of 32,000 km (19,800 miles).^[1]

Africa is home to the oldest inhabited territory on earth, with the human race originating from this continent. Around 3300 BC, the historical record opens in Africa with the rise of literacy in Egypt, which continued with varying levels of influence over other areas until 343 BC. Other prominent civilizations include Ethiopia, the Nubian kingdom, Carthage, the kingdoms of the Sahel and Great Zimbabwe. In 1482, the Portuguese established the first of many trading stations along the Guinea coast at Elmina. The chief commodities dealt in were slaves, gold, ivory and spices.^[2] The European discovery of America in 1492 was followed by a great development of the slave trade, which, before the Portuguese era, had been an overland trade almost exclusively, and never confined to any one continent.

However, at the same time that slavery was ending in Europe, in the early 19th century the European imperial powers staged a massive "scramble for Africa" and occupied most of the continent, creating many colonial nation states, and leaving only two independent nations: Liberia, the Black American colony, and Ethiopia.^[3] This occupation continued until after the conclusion of the Second World War, when all colonial states gradually obtained formal independence. Today, Africa is home to over 50 independent countries, all but two of which still have the borders drawn up during the era of European colonialism.

African Union

In Durban, South Africa, July 2002 by its first president, South African Thabo Mbeki, after a transition period of three years and preceded by several Summit and Ministerial level meetings, the African Union (AU) was formed. The AU is a federation consisting of 53 states. Eventually, the AU aims to have a single currency and a single integrated defense force, as well as other institutions of state, including a cabinet for the AU Head of State. The purpose of the federation is to help secure for Africans: democracy, human rights and a sustainable economy, especially by ending intra-African conflict and creating an effective common market. The idea of an African Union, separate from the Organization of African Unity (OAU)^[4] began with the vision of a "United States of Africa" from the Libyan leader Muammar al-Qaddafi, who, frustrated by developments in the Arab world, has in recent years largely given up his long held ideologies of Arab nationalism and Pan-Arabism^[5], even publicly forsaking his identity as an Arab. This program draws shape from several conceptual and programmatic sources.^[6] These include:

- The OAU Charter (1963) and the major Decisions marking the history of the OAU^[7]

- The Lagos Plan of Action adopted in April 1980 by an OAU extraordinary Summit. This Plan of Action was never implemented since a majority of the African States has been obliged to pursue stabilization and structural adjustment Programs^[8]

- The Abuja Treaty adopted in 1991, which proposes economic integration of the Continent as a way of enhancing development; establishment of the African Economic Community with the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) as its building blocks; the phased establishment of the Pan-African Parliament, the African Court of Justice and ECOSOC; and recognition of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights^[9]

- The Arusha Declaration (1990) on Popular Participation in Development;^[10]

- The CSSDCA (2000) which adopted a Memorandum on Civil Society participation, transparency and principles of action in four key areas known as "the Four Calabashes", namely^[11]:

Ÿ collective security;

Ÿ stability: rule of law, good governance, human rights,

democracy, etc

Ÿ development: promotion of economic cooperation and

integration;

Ÿ cooperation: Member States to act jointly and

collectively;

- NEPAD^{[12]which aims at building "a partnership for development" between various players of national life and also between African leaders and the International Community.[13]} (2001)

With the help of the previously mentioned organizations that laid the foundation, the African Union was celebrated as a historic opportunity to renew the Pan-Africanism^[14] that was born at the close of the 19^th century and to endow Africa with the requisite capacities to take up the challenges of the 21^st century. The AU faces many challenges, including health issues such as combating malaria and the HIV epidemic; political issues such as confronting totalitarian, undemocratic regimes and mediating in the many civil wars; economic issues such as improving the standard of living of millions of impoverished, uneducated Africans; ecological issues such as dealing with recurring famines, desertification and lack of ecological sustainability; as well as the legal issue of the still unfinished decolonization of Western Sahara, one of its member states.^[15] Pan-Africanism had the ultimate goal of not only eliminating colonial borders and frontiers but also eradicating the differences arising from ethnic, racial, or linguistic pluralism. However, this Pan-Africanism had only limited impact on the process of building African Unity due to the fact that the OAU had advocated the principle of respect for the boundaries inherited from colonialism, and also due to lack of political will.^[16]

At the time of the OAU's founding, African leaders disagreed about what kind of organization it should be. Some leaders pushed for the creation of a central government that would unite all of Africa under one authority. However, many of the nations had just recently gained independence from colonial rule and their leaders opposed the idea. The leaders eventually reached a compromise but in doing so, created an organization that is controlled by its member nations, leaving it with little power to act on its own. Nonetheless, the organization has helped strengthen ties among African nations and settle disputes. However, it has also faced many problems that have undermined its ability to achieve its goals. In the 1990s, new leadership helped the OAU gain increased influence.

The AU is divided into 8 commissions and 14 directorates. However, the Assembly of the Heads of States and Governments is the supreme organ. It consists of a representative from each member nation, usually the head of state. The Assembly meets at least once a year. The key organ for the day-to-day functioning of the AU is the AU Commission, which consists of a chairperson, a deputy chairperson, eight commissioners, and a staff.

Peer Review Mechanism

The African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) is a mutually agreed instrument voluntarily consented to by the member states of the African Union (AU) as a self-monitoring mechanism. The mandate of the APRM is to encourage conformity concerning political, economic and corporate governance values, codes and standards, among African countries and the objectives in socio-economic development within the New Partnership for Africa's Development.^[17] The 37th Summit of the Organization of African Unity held in July 2001 in Lusaka, Zambia, adopted the Strategic Policy Framework and a new vision for the revival and development of Africa through its Declaration on the New African Initiatives, now called the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). The Inaugural Summit of the AU, held in July 2002 in Durban, South Africa, endorsed the NEPAD Progress Report and Initial Action Plan and encouraged member states to adopt the NEPAD Declaration on Democracy, Political Economic and Corporate Governance and accede to the APRM in its Declaration on the Implementation of the NEPAD.

The mandate of the APRM is to ensure that the policies and practices of participating states conform to the agreed political, economic and corporate governance codes and standards contained in the Declaration on democracy, political, economic and corporate governance that was approved by the African Union (AU) Summit in July 2002. The APRM is a mutually agreed instrument for self-monitoring by the participating member governments.
The primary purpose of the APRM is to foster the adoption of policies, standards and practices that lead to political stability, high economic growth, sustainable development and accelerated integration through the sharing of experiences and the reinforcement of successful and best practice, including identifying deficiencies and assessing the needs for capacity building.^[18]

Every peer review exercise carried out under the authority of the mechanism must be technically competent and free of political manipulation. It must also comply with the mandate of the APRM referred to above. These stipulations together constitute the core guiding principles of the mechanism.^[19]
Participation in the APRM process is open to all member states of the AU. Countries wishing to participate in the APRM notify the chairperson of the Heads of State and Government Implementation Committee (HSGIC). This will automatically entail an undertaking to submit to periodic peer reviews, as well as to facilitate such reviews with logistical and other support, and to be guided by agreed parameters for good political governance and good economic and corporate governance.
An Independent Panel of Eminent Persons (IPEP) will be established. It shall comprise five to seven members. There shall be at least one member from each of the AU sub-regions. All members shall be appointed by the HSGIC including the chairperson and vice chairperson who shall be selected from among the members. The presence of five members shall constitute a quorum, and the vice chairperson will act as the chairperson in the absence of the latter. The composition and functions of the IPEP are set out later in this paper.
The NEPAD Secretariat will be the Coordinating Secretariat for the peer review process. As such, it shall be responsible for, among other things, providing secretarial and technical support to the IPEP and the Implementation Committee.

Currently, there are five stages to the APRM process that help to globalize the African states.^[20]

Stage One will entail a careful analysis of the governance and development environment in the country being reviewed. This analysis will draw heavily on the UNECA Governance Project, which would have covered 20 to 25 countries by December 2002. That project aims at defining and measuring governance on the African continent through a number of country studies, each of which will provide more than 80 indicators on the nature and quality of governance. These indicators will provide background on the key governance and development issues in the following areas:

· Political representativeness and rights. To cover issues of political systems and electoral processes, representation and participation of various stakeholders in decision-making.

· Institutional effectiveness. Including issues related to the nature and workings of the legislature, judiciary and executive branches of government, as well as the state of the non-governmental sector.

· Economic management and governance. Addressing issues of macroeconomic management, public financial accountability, monetary and financial transparency, accounting and auditing systems, and regulatory oversight bodies, as well as issues of capacity, effectiveness, and accountability of the economic decision-making and service delivery systems and processes.

A critical element of the UNECA Governance Project, and one, which will be used to inform the APRM process, is the country consultation. Those consultations entail the seeking of advice through national steering committees and the dissemination of findings through workshops. They provide for wide-ranging interaction and buy-in by a large number of stakeholders including civil society organizations. Together with the findings of the Governance Project, the consultations will identify those key issues in political governance (peace and security, human rights, electoral participation, etc.) that should be examined in the peer review process.^{[21]One track will be concerned with the political governance issues identified through the country consultations and country governance reports as described in Stage One. The IPEP will select and appoint appropriate institutions or individuals to conduct the political governance peer reviews based on those identified issues.}

Stage Two will constitute the country visits by peer review mission teams. This stage will be informed by the analysis prepared in Stage One and the work of the missions will be conditioned by the contents of the respective Initiating Memoranda, as set out in Annex I. There shall be two tracks to Stage Two.

Ÿ The second track will cover the economic and corporate governance issues. These peer reviews will be conducted by the UNECA in conjunction with the AfDB. The former will be responsible for all of the standard set of issues pertaining to economic management and governance, while the latter will have responsibility for matters on banking and financial standards. The mission will be led by UNECA experts and will include representatives from two African countries.

Mission teams will consult and extensively interview relevant government officials, parliamentarians, opposition party members not in parliament, private sector representatives, representatives of civil society groups (including the media, academia, trade unions, NGOs) and officials of resident missions of regional and international organizations.^[22]

Stage Three involves the preparation of mission findings of the peer review. A draft of each report will be discussed with the government concerned, prior to submission to the IPEP. Those discussions will be designed to ensure the accuracy of the information and to provide the government an opportunity to react to a mission's findings and to provide its own views on how the identified shortcomings may be addressed. These responses of the government will be appended to the final draft of the report. However, each mission report will remain independent and its findings will not be altered or vetted by the government concerned.^[23]

Stage Four entails discussion and adoption of the peer review reports by the NEPAD structures. Each report will be submitted through the NEPAD/APRM Secretariat for consideration and adoption by the IPEP and, ultimately, by the HSGIC. It is also recommended that the reports be considered by a technical committee comprising the IPEP and senior officials of countries that have agreed to be peer reviewed to reinforce the mutual learning and adoption of best practices aspects of the APRM process.^[24]

Stage Five will entail the formal and public tabling of the APRM reports in key regional and sub-regional structures and, in particular, the AU structures.^[25]

Peer reviews will be conducted within the timeframes as approved by the 2002 AU Summit. Specifically, there will be four types of reviews:

· The first country review being the base review to be undertaken within 18 months of a country becoming a member of the APRM.

· Then there is a periodic review that takes place every two years.

· In addition to these, a member country can, for its own reasons, ask for a review that is not part of the periodically mandated reviews.

· Early signs of impending political and economic crises in a member country would also be sufficient cause for instituting a review.

However, some flexibility is needed to accommodate special circumstances, for instance, where the timing of a peer review would create difficulties given the electoral cycle in the country concerned, but also to allow for early reviews in the case of serious emerging political and/or economic problems in a member country. Furthermore, to maintain an efficient scheduling of peer reviews, the authorities of a country to be peer reviewed should make every effort to provide written responses to the questionnaires as well as other relevant background information to the reviewer institution prior to the start of the peer review mission.^[26]

Since the African Peer Review Mechanism was launched about three years ago, less than half of the African Union's 53-member states have acceded to the process designed to improve governance on the continent. The African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) commits countries to opening themselves for inspection by a team of governance experts, this to determine whether they have conformed to principles laid out in the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). These include observing the rule of law, and respecting human and property rights. NEPAD, a blueprint for growth and poverty reduction in Africa, was formed in 2001 by five African leaders: South African President Thabo Mbeki, Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal, Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and Tunisia's Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

Zambia is one the latest countries to begin the process of accession to the APRM. "Zambia has announced its interest to be reviewed. If it completes the process, it will become the 24th country to accede to the mechanism," said an official at the APRM secretariat in South Africa's commercial hub of Johannesburg, who declined to be named.^[27]
Female Role in the APRM

The president of the Pan African Parliament, Gertrude Mongella, has described the contribution by South African Women in Dialogue (SAWID)^[28] to the country's African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) as "a revolution." "The revolution has come and there is no going back," she said in her welcoming address at SAWID's three-day conference on the APRM, held in Boksburg in Gauteng over the weekend.^[29]

Mrs. Graca Machel has called for the amendment of the Parliamentary Protocol of the African Union to ensure at least two members from each country are women. "This is the only way that the change from the OAU (former Organization of African Unity) to the AU can give a real chance to women to take their rightful place in the continent's decision-making,"^[30] she told journalists on arrival in Nairobi. The women's network took part in the first assembly of the African Union in Durban, South Africa. The purpose of the network meeting here was to create common ground for African women's networks, according to Mrs. Machel. She stressed the need to define women's integration in the AU. "It is one thing to have women sitting in parliament but quite another having them discuss and make decisions that are of importance to women," she said. The network is concerned with having women in all AU programs.^[31]

At least 27 member countries need to sign the AU Protocol if the Pan African parliament is to take off on schedule. As at Maputo, only 21 countries had signed the protocol. Mrs. Machel questioned the legitimacy of women's advocacy groups, which were not rooted on the continent. "Our legitimacy has to come from the mandate we receive from the grassroots or at least from the sub-regions we come from." She said, "You have to move to a point where your legitimacy comes from people's representation. You are not speaking on their behalf, but you represent them."

The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa was adopted on 11 July 2003 by the Assembly of the African Union second summit in Maputo Mozambique. The Protocol will enter into force thirty (30) days after the deposit of the fifteenth (15) instrument of ratification. The Protocol will complement the African Charter in ensuring the promotion and protection of the human rights of women in Africa. Its provisions include the right to life, integrity and security of person, right to participation in the political and decision making process, right to inheritance, right to food security and adequate housing, protection of women against harmful traditional practices and protection of women in armed conflict.^[32] Others include access of women to justice and equal protection before the law.

The implementation of the Protocol will be supervised by the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, the body established to monitor compliance of states parties to the African Charter, pending the establishment of the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights. In addition, states parties to the Protocol commit themselves to indicate in their periodic reports to the African Commission the legislative and other measures undertaken to ensure the full realization of the rights recognized in the Protocol. The first African Union Ministerial Conference in May 2003 in Kigali, Rwanda calls upon member states of the AU to take all necessary measures for early adoption, ratification of the Protocol.
Conclusion

The slave trade and colonization on which we need not dwell, due to their complexities, but which we should never forget, played the role of not only slowing down but also of fracturing Africa's progress. Having been bled by force, for four Centuries, of its best brains and manpower, and of between 30 and 100 million of its best sons and daughters, this state of affairs, necessarily, left indelible marks on the Continent; it left ineffaceable scars not only in terms of property but also in terms of human assets. Admittedly, we must learn to put things behind us. However, this does mean that we should sidetrack or sweep them under the carpet, and thereby fall from amnesty into amnesia. Rather, it means that we should, in all lucidity, understand the facts by establishing the truth, and thereby exercise Justice and celebrate Reconciliation.

A new development paradigm came to the forefront in recent years, leading the

international community to construct a terminology whereby sustainable human development was considered as the widening of the opportunities offered to citizens to meet their material, political and cultural needs in a context of recognized diversity and guaranteed pluralism. This paradigm re-legitimizes the long-term, as well as planning in the sense of preparing for the future, and re-situates human rights (including the right to water and food) at the centre of the development process. Development was understood as a process of liberation, auto-creation and production of material wealth in the symbolic sense and meaning of the word. Therefore, as far as Africans are concerned, it is no longer a question of catching-up with anything; it is no longer a question of trailing behind any one or being demoted to the sidelines by anyone; rather, it is a question of being at the centre of their own affairs. Africans should devise for themselves watchwords, namely; self-development; self-reliance; self-reliance before development; and self-reliance for recognition and development.^[33] In other words, the stake for Africa is to formulate a societal project for home-grown development open to the whole world, rather than promote an opening to the world which nips this very home-grown development in the bud. Having thus clarified the direction of its endeavors for full development, Africa can seek to integrate itself into the globalization process without losing its soul. It should, for instance, consolidate and diversify its productive base by attracting fresh direct foreign investments and by enhancing its value added to produce quality-manufactured goods and services suited to the demands of consumers. By so doing, African countries would be in a position to win the battle for their domestic and regional markets and successfully launch themselves into global markets.

Appendices

Appendix A: Map of the member states of the African Union

Map of the African Union. All African countries are member-states, with the exception of Morocco.

Appendix B: Emblem of the African Union

The palm leaves shooting up on either side of the outer circle stand for peace. The gold circle again symbolizes Africa's wealth and bright future. The green circle again stands for African hopes and aspirations. The plain map of Africa without boundaries in the inner circle signifies African unity. The small interlocking red rings at base of the Emblem stand for African solidarity and the blood shed for liberation of Africa.
Works Cited

"African Union." African Women's Development and Communication Network (FEMNET). (2002)

"African Union adopts protocol on the rights of African women." Sister Namibia. (2003)

Agyeman, Opoku. The Failure of Grassroots Pan-Africanism; The Case of the All-African Trade Union Federation. New York: Lexington Books, 2004

Dompere, Kofi Kissi. African Union: Pan African Analytical Foundations. New Jersey: Adonis & Abbey Publishers Ltd, 2006

Gilbert, E and Reynolds, J. Africa in World History. New York: Prentice Hall, 2003

Koizumi, Junichiro. "African Union Summit." Presidents & Prime Ministers. (EQES, Inc, 2003)

Makoa, Francis K. "African union: new organization, old ideological framework." Strategic Review for Southern Africa (2004)

Melber, Henning. "The New African Initiative and the African Union: A Preliminary Assessment and Documentation." Current African Issues, 25. (2002)

Murithi, Timothy. The African Union: Pan-Africanism, Peace-building and Development. New York: Ashgate Publishing, 2005

Murray, Rachel. Human Rights in Africa : From the OAU to the African Union. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004

Schoeman, Maxi. "Imagining a community -- the African Union as an emerging security community." Strategic Review for Southern Africa. (2002)

Shillington, Kevin. History of Africa. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 1995

Wandia, Mary. "African Union: update on progress." African Women's Development and Communication Network (FEMNET) (2003)

^[1] Shillington, Kevin. History of Africa. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 1995, pp. 15- 34.

^[2] Gilbert, E and Reynolds, J. Africa in World History. New York: Prentice Hall, 2003, pp. 23-26.

^[3] Gilbert, E and Reynolds, J. Africa in World History. New York: Prentice Hall, 2003, pp. 45-46.

^[4]Its intended purpose was to promote the unity and solidarity of the African States and act as a collective voice for the continent. It was also dedicated to the eradication of colonialism and established a Liberation Committee to aid independence movements.

^[5] Pan-Arabism is a movement for unification among the Arab peoples and nations of the Middle East. It is closely connected to Arab nationalism. Pan-Arabism has tended to be secular and often socialist, and has strongly opposed Western political involvement in the Arab world. Pan-Arabism is a form of cultural nationalism.

^[6] Agyeman, Opoku. The Failure of Grassroots Pan-Africanism; The Case of the All-African Trade Union Federation. New York: Lexington Books, 2004: pp. 234-240

^[7] Melber, Henning. "The New African Initiative and the African Union: A Preliminary Assessment and Documentation." Current African Issues, 25. (2002)

^[8] Agyeman, Opoku. The Failure of Grassroots Pan-Africanism; The Case of the All-African Trade Union Federation. New York: Lexington Books, 2004: pp. 123- 124.

^[9] Schoeman, Maxi. "Imagining a community -- the African Union as an emerging security community." Strategic Review for Southern Africa. (2002)

^[10]Was made by Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere on 5 February 1967, outlining the principles of Ujamaa to develop the nation's economy. The declaration called for an overhaul of the economic system, through African socialism and self-reliance in locally administered villages.

^[11] Agyeman, Opoku. The Failure of Grassroots Pan-Africanism; The Case of the All-African Trade Union Federation. New York: Lexington Books, 2004: pp. 156-162.

^[12] New Partnership for Africa's Development is an economic development program of the African Union. NEPAD is a merger of the Millennium Partnership for the African Recovery Program (MAP) and the OMEGA Plan. The NEPAD was adopted at the 37th session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government in July 2001 in Lusaka, Zambia. It is meant to develop values and monitor their implementation within the framework of the African Union.

^[13] Schoeman, Maxi. "Imagining a community -- the African Union as an emerging security community." Strategic Review for Southern Africa. (2002)

^[14] Pan-Africanism literally means 'all Africanism'. It is a sociopolitical world-view, as well as a movement, which seeks to unify and uplift both native Africans and those of the African diaspora, as part of a "global African community".

^[15] Makoa, Francis K. "African union: new organization, old ideological framework." Strategic Review for Southern Africa (2004)

^[16] Agyeman, Opoku. The Failure of Grassroots Pan-Africanism; The Case of the All-African Trade Union Federation. New York: Lexington Books, 2004: pp. 125- 126.

^[17] Melber, Henning. "The New African Initiative and the African Union: A Preliminary Assessment and Documentation." Current African Issues, 25. (2002)

^[18] Melber, Henning. "The New African Initiative and the African Union: A Preliminary Assessment and Documentation." Current African Issues, 25. (2002)

^[19] Makoa, Francis K. "African union: new organization, old ideological framework." Strategic Review for Southern Africa (2004)

^[20] Murray, Rachel. Human Rights in Africa : From the OAU to the African Union. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004: pp. 19-21.

^[21] Koizumi, Junichiro. "African Union Summit." Presidents & Prime Ministers. (EQES, Inc, 2003)

^[22] Koizumi, Junichiro. "African Union Summit." Presidents & Prime Ministers. (EQES, 2003)

^[23] Koizumi, Junichiro. "African Union Summit." Presidents & Prime Ministers. (EQES, 2003)

^[24] Koizumi, Junichiro. "African Union Summit." Presidents & Prime Ministers. (EQES, Inc, 2003)

^[25] Koizumi, Junichiro. "African Union Summit." Presidents & Prime Ministers. (EQES, Inc, 2003)

^[26] Melber, Henning. "The New African Initiative and the African Union: A Preliminary Assessment and Documentation." Current African Issues, 25. (2002)

^[27] Murray, Rachel. Human Rights in Africa : From the OAU to the African Union. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004: pp. 54-57.

^[28] "African Union." African Women's Development and Communication Network (FEMNET). (2002)

^[29] "African Union." African Women's Development and Communication Network (FEMNET). (2002)

^[30] "African Union adopts protocol on the rights of African women." Sister Namibia. (2003)

^[31] "African Union." African Women's Development and Communication Network (FEMNET). (2002)

^[32] "African Union adopts protocol on the rights of African women." Sister Namibia. (2003)

^[33] Murithi, Timothy. The African Union: Pan-Africanism, Peace-building and Development. New York: Ashgate Publishing, 2005: pp. 34-45.