Addis Ababa - The 44th ordinary session of the Executive Council of the African Union (AU) entered its second day of work Thursday in Addis Ababa as part of preparations for this weekend's 37th Summit of Heads of State and Government in the Ethiopian capital.
After analyzing the report compiled by the Permanent Representatives Committee (COREP), the meeting is now examining agenda items relating to African candidacies in the International System, the situation of the Pan African Parliament and institutional reforms, among others.
In addition to the election of 10 new members of the Peace and Security Council (PSC), the participants are expected to address the constitution of the Panel of Eminent African Personalities to oversee the process of pre-selection of candidates for membership of the AU Commission.
The agenda includes discussions on the operationalization of the AU Peace Fund, the amendment of the AU Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption and the renewal of the mandates of the African Space Council.
The ministerial committees' reports on contributions and monitoring the implementation of Agenda 2063 are also on the agenda.
Wednesday's opening session was marked by the intervention of the Chairperson of the AU Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, who urged the Executive Council to pay greater attention to the "worrying" situation of some of the AU's specialized organs, in particular the Pan African Parliament (PAP).
In his speech, he called for urgent measures to be taken to improve the performance of these bodies, and of the PAP in particular, by eliminating the ambiguities identified in the provisions of the protocol that created it in 2004.
According to Moussa Mahamat, the member states should speed up the process of ratifying the Malabo Protocol, which proposes to introduce the necessary changes that have not yet come into force.
He pointed out that, 10 years after its adoption, only 16 states have ratified the document, which needs at least 28 ratifications for it to enter into force.
He also considered it a matter of urgency to fill the vacant posts on the Board of the PAP Assembly in order to allow the institution to function properly. IZ/VC/AMP
