The African Union Executive Council session concluded its 45th Ordinary Session on the 19th July 2024, after deliberations that delved into various key issues that would advance the political and socio-economic development and integration of the continent. Part of the agenda of the two-day ministerial meeting was elections and appointments of officials to African Union Organs and institutions. The ministers held successful elections that concluded with the appointment of the following:

1. Three (3) Judges of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights were appointed for a term of six (6) years.

• Justice Blaise Tchikaya (Congo) was reelected for a second term.
• Justice Duncan Gaswaga, (Uganda).
• Justice Stella Isibhakhomen Anukam (Nigeria), was reelected for a second term.

African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights is composed of eleven judges who are nationals of Member States of the African Union. Upon nomination by their respective States, the Judges of the Court are elected, in their individual capacities, from among African jurists of proven integrity and of recognized practical, judicial or academic competence and experience in the field of human rights. The Judges are elected for a six-year term, renewable once. The Judges of the Court elect from among themselves, a President and Vice-President of the Court who serve a two-year term. They can be re-elected only once. The President of the Court resides and works full time at the seat of the Court, while the other ten (10) Judges work on part-time basis. In the discharge of his/her duties, the President is assisted by a Registrar who performs registry, managerial and administrative functions of the Court.

2. Kenneth Kamwi Matengu (Namibia) was re-elected and appointed as the President of the Pan African University (PAU) Council for a three (3)- year term, effective October 2024.

The PAU Council is the highest governing body of the university and has oversight of the policy, finances and property of the PAU. The PAU council has authority to adopt regulations and to issue directives, policies and guidelines to govern all activities and operations of the PAU. PAU is a flagship continental initiative whose establishment in 2011 was inspired and driven by a culmination of continental initiatives of the African Union Commission to revitalize higher education and research in Africa. It is a project designed to exemplify excellence, enhance the attractiveness, local relevance and global competitiveness of African higher education and research, and establishes the Pan African University at the core of Africa’s development. 

3. Fernand Guy Isseri(Cameroon) was appointed a member of the African Space Council for a term of four (4) years. The election of one female member of the Space Council from the Central Region was postponed. The ministers urged Member States of the Central Region to submit female candidatures whose election will be held during the to the Executive Council session in February 2025.

The African Space Council comprises ten members. In February 2024, the Executive Council elected and appointed the first African Space Council to advance the operationalisation of the African Space Agency, which was inaugurated in January 2023. The African Space Council is charged with coordinating the activities of the African Space Agency, guiding continental space policymaking, resource allocation, and regulatory oversights, and managing African space industry stakeholders, including governments and international partners, to facilitate favourable partnerships in space science and technology. 

The Council will ensure that investments align strategically with continental objectives, including those outlined in Africa 2063, prioritising advancements in space exploration, research, technology, and indigenous capacity development. The ouncil will facilitate collaboration in space exploration and research through local, regional, continental, and international cooperation, promoting mutual benefits and peaceful endeavours for all Africans.

4. Nadia Annouz (Morocco) was appointed a member of the African Union Advisory Board against Corruption (AUABC) for a six (6)- year term.

The Advisory Board on Corruption is composed of eleven (11) members elected by the Executive Council from among a list of experts of the highest integrity, impartiality, and recognized competence in matters relating to preventing and combating corruption and related offences, proposed by the State Parties. Board Members serve for a term of six (6) years renewable only once. The mandate of the Board is to promote and encourage the adoption of measures and actions by State Parties to prevent, detect, punish and eradicate corruption and related offences in Africa as well as to follow-up on the application of those measures and report on a regular basis, to AU Policy Organs, the progress made by each State Party in complying with the provisions of the Convention.

5. The following members of the African Union Board of External Auditors (BoEA) were appointed as Head of Supreme Audit Institutions as to carry out audit assignments for financial years 2024 and 2025 as per Rule 99 of the African Union Financial Rules. Mauritius (Eastern Region), Eswatini (Southern Region), and Ivory Coast (Western Region) Equatorial Guinea (Central Region). The members will join the existing first-tier members Board of External Auditors.

The Board of External Auditors comprises Eleven (11) Heads of Supreme Audit Institutions, one member from each five region of Africa, to serve for a tenure of two-year term. The Board also comprises an additional six Member States from the first-tier of the scale of assessment of the African Union budget. The Board is mandated to make observations on the efficiency of the financial management, including the accounting system, the internal controls and, in general, the administration and management of the African Union, including internal liaisons between the various authorities responsible for the framing, preparation and administration of the annual budget.

For details and updates of the 6th Mid-Year Coordination Meeting in Accra, Ghana, visit- https://au.int/en/summit/coordination/6