Kenya’s President William Ruto has called for urgent and sweeping reforms of the African Union (AU), warning that the continental body is no longer capable of meeting Africa’s current and future needs.
Speaking at the Mashariki Cooperation Conference in Mombasa, where he addressed intelligence and security chiefs from across Africa, Ruto said he had been tasked by fellow heads of state to lead efforts to review and transform AU institutions.
He argued that the organisation must be fundamentally restructured if it is to effectively support Africa’s development ambitions and respond to emerging political, economic and security challenges.
“My colleagues, heads of state, gave me the assignment to work on the reform of the African Union institutions and organs to make them fit for purpose for a time such as this,” he said.
Ruto was more direct in his assessment of the bloc’s effectiveness, adding that the AU in its current form falls short of expectations.
“I can tell you without an iota of doubt that the African Union, as it is today, is not fit for purpose,” he said. “It is not fit to provide the leadership that this continent needs going into the future.”
He stressed the need for deep institutional reforms to reposition the AU as a more responsive and results-driven organisation capable of unlocking Africa’s economic and demographic potential.
Ruto also called on intelligence and security leaders to contribute ideas on how to reshape the AU to better serve the continent.
Africa, he warned, risks failing to harness its growing population and economic opportunities if reforms are not urgently implemented.
