THE AU@20: PROGRESS, PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS TOWARDS AGENDA 2063

The Institute for Pan-African Thought and Conversation (IPATC), based at the University of Johannesburg (UJ), the Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA), and Trust Africa are jointly organising a continental symposium on the theme: “The African Union at 20: Progress, Problems and Prospects” to be convened in November 2022.

The symposium is part and parcel of the commemoration of the 20th Anniversary of the African Union (AU) and has an overall goal of creating a platform for scholars, practitioners and civil society actors to critically reflect on the progress that the AU has registered, problems it has encountered and its prospects in the short-term, medium-term and long-term horizon.

The rationale for this initiative is therefore premised on six (6) main factors:

1. the transition from OAU to the AU in the late 1990s was an epoch-making development and there is therefore a need to review the result of the transition to date.
2. there is need to discover through evidence-based research the real difference and similarities between OAU and AU.
3. this initiative will breathe life into the almost defunct Agenda 2063 as the long-term development blueprint of the AU.
4. this project will also reignite intellectual imagination towards collective and Pan-Africanist efforts towards integration following years of unilateralism and bilateralism reinforced by the onset of COVID-19 pandemic.
5. this initiative will contribute to the decolonization of Africa’s international relations, so the continent is able to occupy its rightful place in the global community of nations within and outside the United Nations system.
6. the AU is currently undergoing institutional reforms and it is imperative that we review this process so far.

The conference will be convened in a hybrid format involving both a physical meeting and a virtual platform. You can register to attend the event here

Symposium venue: Sheraton Hotel, Pretoria (South Africa)

Date: 2-4, November 2022

Concept Note – AU@20 Symposium

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