African Institutional Actors Discuss the African Governance Architecture in Nairobi

Since its inception in 2002, the African Union (AU) has launched a number of governance instruments and has created institutions to support their implementation. The AU also put emphasis on the need to coordinate the work of AU governance institutions at all levels (from local to continental) and to create an integrated approach to governance. Such coordination process is foreseen to take place within the framework of the so-called African Governance Architecture (AGA).

2009 has been an active year for the consolidation of the AGA. In March 2009, the AUC organised a multi-stakeholder meeting in Yaoundé in order to discuss the basic premises of the Architecture as well as the modalities for its operationalisation. The meeting focused in particular on the need to create a so-called African Governance Platform, as a component of the AGA, the role of which would be to strengthen dialogue, coordination and harmonisation of activities between existing governance decision-making organs and structures. The Governance Platform should ensure that Africa speaks with one voice during discussions with partners, including the EU within the context of the Joint Africa-EU Strategy.