ISSUE 134 | APRIL 2021 Peace & Security Council Report Operationalising the new AU PAPS department is easier said than done The AU should persevere on the GERD issue Poor governance in Africa hampers progress No more half measures in Cameroon’s Anglophone crisis Chad’s turbulent presidential polls put democracy on the backburner Operationalising the new AU PAPS department is easier said than done The new African Union (AU) Commission, elected at the recent AU summit, took office on 15 March 2021. In the wake of his election, Ambassador Bankole Adeoye, the new commissioner of the merged Political Affairs, Peace and Security (PAPS) department, has drawn up an ambitious action plan for the next year. The plan includes key deliverables aimed at improving coordination, re-energising AU early warning, achieving integrated conflict management, strengthening democracy and good governance, and achieving smart partnership for human security. While the Commissioner’s efforts have been commended by staff in the short time he has been in office, it is clear that the implementation of the PAPS priority action plan will face challenges that will require his attention and significant political support from the Commission and the AU member states. Going forward, therefore, the process will benefit from a clear definition and delineation of mandates between the Conflict Management (previously the Peace and Security Department) and Governance and Conflict Prevention directorates (governance was previously under the Political Affairs Department). The commissioner has shared an activity plan and budget in order to operationalise his vision for the department In addition, there is concern that, in an attempt to make significant budget cuts, AU member states risk significantly reducing the capacity of the merged PAPS to deliver on flagship projects and priorities. If the priority plan for the PAPS is to achieve its goals, the commissioner Current PSC Chairperson will have to proactively engage the AU Reform Unit, the head of the Human HE Mohammed Idriss Farah, Resources department and department staff who have various key roles to ambassador of Djibouti to Ethiopia play in addressing emerging issues as a matter of priority. and permanent representative to the African Union. Shift in working methods There are already major shifts in the working methods of the PAPS PSC members Department. The commissioner has shared an activity plan and budget in Algeria, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, order to operationalise his vision for the department. Chad, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, A department-wide priority plan will not only help align the work of the Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal two departments and enhance delivery but will also guide their focus and increase accountability. 2 PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL REPORT One possible concern with regard to the priority areas there needs to be clarity as to where the programme will has been what to do with the activities various units be run from within PAPS. had begun implementing before the merger of the two Another tricky issue is short-term staff. In 2019 member departments, particularly in situations where those states expressed concern that 109 short-term employees activities are not highlighted in the priority plans. were seconded by external partners to work in the Peace and Security Department, compared to the 57 posts Getting the structure to deliver on priorities financed by member states. The first pillar of the priority action plan for PAPS focuses A major outcome of the restructuring process has on the implementation of the new merged structure. therefore been to eliminate short-term positions. Short- Several issues must still be clarified. One major question term staff are thus not sure whether they still have a job is how well the units in the new structure fit within the at the AU. It is also unclear where those with long-term mandates of the various directorates under which they contracts will be placed in the new PAPS structure, and have been placed. whether they will maintain their job grades. A number of personnel in managerial positions retired in 2020. As a For example, the new early warning and governance result, acting directors currently head the two directorates, monitoring desks are placed in the Conflict Management while all the division heads are yet to be appointed. Directorate rather than the Governance and Conflict Prevention Directorate. Ideally, however, they should simultaneously inform the conflict prevention efforts of One major question is how well the units both directorates. fit within the mandates of the various The new structure has also created a new Secretariat to directorates under which they are placed deal with both the African Governance Architecture (AGA) and the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA). The AGA/APSA Secretariat has been placed under the The restructuring is also aimed at ensuring that the Governance and Conflict Prevention Directorate, even hiring process prioritises meritocracy and transparency. though it should support both directorates. This draws This means that staff will compete for their old positions attention to the centrality of seamless synergy in the or other available positions through an open and operationalisation of the various divisions and units’ transparent process. A team of 10 experts selected from the five regional blocs are expected to oversee functions to realise the commission’s goals. the hiring of key staff, including the director general in The issue is complicated by a significant reduction in the office of the AUC chairperson and the director of the capacity of some units and programmes in the new Human Resource Management, for which recruitment PAPS structure. is underway. Addressing staff concerns The 100-day priority plan indicates that recruitment for PAPS positions, especially for the two director positions, The merger of the two departments, the complete will be concluded by June 2021. Recruitment for the reshuffle of positions and, in some cases, the reduction entire PAPS department, however, is expected to take of available positions have created uncertainty. This is much longer. especially the case with divisions and programmes that These are major challenges the new commissioner have either disappeared, or have been split and merged will have to address if the operationalisation of the with other units, such as the Continental Early Warning PAPS department is to succeed as envisaged. The System (CEWS) division. new department is a key component of the ongoing While a number of CEWS’s functions have been AU reform process. Its success will make a major redistributed, others have disappeared entirely, such as contribution to the capacity of the AU to silence the guns the AU Border Programme. It is encouraging that the and maintain peace on the continent. As such, all efforts Border Programme is prioritised for renewal as part of should be made to support the realisation of the intended efforts to re-energise the early warning system. However, goals of the merger. ISSUE 134 | APRIL 2021 3 Figure 1: PAPS proposed overview Regular staff Short-term staff Total positions Communication, Monitoring 71 40 111 and Evaluation and Principal Partnerships Officer centralised Support staff (12): within relevant departments and - Special Assistant x1 (P3) deployed to Portfolio Department Commissioner - Correspondence Officer x1 (P1) PAPS - Private Secretary x1 (GSA5) (SP3) - Admin Assistant x4 (GSA5) SP3 - Secretary x2 (GSA4) Director - Secretary x1 Liaison Offices and RECs Head of Division (GSA4) Head of Unit - Senior Record Assistants x2 (GSA3) Regular Staff Conflict Governance and Specialised Management (D1) Conflict Prevention (D1) institutions (56 staff)* (35 staff) Early warning West and Central Mediation Democracy, AGA/APSA and governance Africa and Dialogue** Elections, and Secretariat monitoring Regional Desk Division Constitutionalism (P4) handled by (P4) (5 staff) (P5) (8 staff) Division (P5) (9 staff) (3 staff) Regional Desks East and Southern Peace Support Governance and DDR/SSR*** Africa Operations Division Human Rights Division Regional Desk (P5) Division (P5) (P5) ACRST (P4) (5 staff) (16 staff) (12 staff) (6 staff) North Africa Secretariat Peace Principal Regional Desk and Security Post-Conflict AFRIPOL (P4) Council Reconstruction (5 staff) (P5) (10 staff) (P4) (4 staff) Focal Point Women Peace and +8 Junior AUC-PCRD AU Liaison Security, Youth, Professional Offices Child Protection Officers (P2) (1 staff) (P3) (3 staff) (1 per division) Situation Room AFCONE Coordinator (P2) Assistants x6 (GSA5) (7 staff) Notes: * Excluding African Standby Force (35 staff), Liaison Offices (148 staff) and peace keeping missions (63 staff) ** Secretariat support to Panel of the Wise and FEM Wise *** Disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) and security sector reforms (SSR) 4 PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL REPORT The AU should persevere on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam issue The latest bout of negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which took place from 4–6 April 2021, reached a deadlock when the parties – Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan – failed to come to an agreement on the way forward. As matters currently stand, Ethiopia plans to proceed with a second filling of the dam when the next rainy season begins in June/July, to the dismay of both Egypt and Sudan, which have denounced the move. Facilitated by the African Union (AU) since 2020 under the chairing of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, discussions on the GERD have been handed over to the chair of the AU for 2021, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Felix Tshisekedi. The AU, having succeeded in bringing the three parties to the negotiation table, took over from a process led by the United States There have been moments of high tension in this process, particularly between Egypt and Ethiopia when the latter was getting ready to proceed with the first filling of the dam in June/July 2020. The AU, having succeeded in bringing the three parties to the negotiation table, took over from a process led by the United States (US) under the Trump administration.