Reflection on Youth, Peace and Security in Africa

AFRICAN UNION

Jl/fl jUTJI

UNIAO AFRICANA

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, P.O. Box: 3243 Tel.: (251-11) 5513 822 Fax: (251-11) 5519 321

Email: situationroom@africa-union.org

PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL 1080™ MEETING

ADDIS ABABA 25 APRIL 2022

PSC/PR/COMM. 1080 (2022)

COMMUNIQUE

COMMUNIQUE

Adopted by the Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU) at its 1080^th meeting held on 25 April 2022 on the Reflection on Youth, Peace and Security in Africa:

The Peace and Security Council,

Recalling the African Youth Charter adopted by the 7th Ordinary Session of AU Assembly of Heads of Statesand Government held in Banjul, The Gambia, on 2 July 2006, particularly, Article 17, which recognizes the critical role of the youth in promoting peace and security in Africa;

Also recalling Assembly Decisions related to the theme, including [Assembly/AU/Dec.591 (XXVI)], adopted by the 26th Ordinary Session of the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 30 to 31 January 2016, and [Assembly/AU/Dec.753(XXXIII)] adopted by the 33rd Ordinary Session of the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government held from 9 to 10 February 2020; PSC decisions, in particular Communique [PSC/PR/COMM.1067(2022) adopted at its 1067th meeting held on 3 March 2022, as well as the United Nations Security Council Resolutions on youth, peace and security;

Faithful to the realization of Agenda 2063, particularly, Aspirations 4 and 6, envisioning a peaceful and secure Africa and an Africa whose development is people-driven, relying on the potential offered by its people, especially women and youth and caring for children;

Having taken special note ofthe keynote address by H.E. Evariste Ndayishimiye, President of the Republic of Burundi and Guest of Honour; and the opening remarks made by H.E. Ambassador Willy Nyamitwe, the Chairperson of the PSC for April 2022 and the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Burundi; statements by H.E Ambassador Albert Shingiro, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Development Cooperation ofthe Republic of Burundi, and H.E. Ambassador Bankole Adeoye, AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security;

Also noting the statement by Ms. Chido Cleopatra Mpemba, the Special Envoy of the Chairperson ofthe AU Commission on Youth, the presentation ofthe outcome ofthe Continental Dialogue on Youth, Peace and Security by Mr. Achaleke Christian Leke, African Union Youth Ambassador for Peace representing Central Africa, and the statement by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Office to the African Union (UNOAU), and the representative of UN Resident Coordinator in Burundi and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP);

Acting under Article 7 of its Protocol, the Peace and Security Council:

1. Welcomes the successful convening of the Continental Dialogue on Youth, Peace and Security in Bujumbura, Burundi, from 23 to 24 April 2022; in this regard, expresses profound gratitude to H.E. Evariste Ndayishimiye, President ofthe Republic of Burundi and the people of Burundi for the laudable initiative of the Continental Dialogue in advancing the youth, peace and security agenda in Africa;

2. Commends the Government and people of Burundi for their efforts in prioritizing youth inclusion in peace and security, as well as capacitating the youth through various initiatives, including the creation of a Youth Bank and financing youth's entrepreneurship, to spearhead development activities in the Country; encourages other Member States to emulate the practical model of youth's inclusion with a view to achieve social cohesion and promote a culture of living together in peace, as well as prevent youth radicalization by extremist and terrorist groups;

3. Underscores the crucial role that the youth play nationally, regionally, and at the Continental level in the promotion of peace, security and stability, as well as socio-economic development, within the framework of implementing the AU Master Roadmap of Practical Steps to Silencing the Guns in Africa and the Continental Framework on Youth, Peace and Security;

4. Urges the Special Envoy of the Chairperson of the AU Commission on Youth and the African Youth Ambassadors for Peace (AYAPs), in close collaboration with Youth Focal Points in the RECs/RMs, to scale up their engagements to promote youth involvement in conflict prevention, resolution and transformation in pursuance of sustainable peace and socio-economic development from the grassroots levels; in this regard, stresses the need to capacitate the AYAPs to enable them to effectively champion youth issues on the Continent;

5. Calls upon the youth in the Continent to unite, harness their talents, strengths and creativity to transform Africa and achieve sustainable peace, security, stability and socio­economic development; and stresses the need for youth to promote African languages, including Kiswahili, as one of the means and ways of bridging the divide amongst the youth, and achieve regional integration;

6. Highlights the importance of interventions aimed at further building the resilience of the youth and human capacity development to ensure self-sufficiency, including through access to quality education, vocational training, short term livelihood and entrepreneurship assistance, and establishing youth cooperatives and advisory boards to ensure safe and inclusive spaces for youth participation in socio-economic activities; and urges Member states to establish socio­economic programs aimed at ushering the youth into money economy;

7. While underlining the needier opening access to social media in order to connect the

youth of the Continent, emphasizes the imperative guarding against the spread of misinformation and hate speech, as well as the need to balance between the right to access social media with the right to regulate its use by the State;

8. Reiterates its call upon Member States to sign, ratify and domesticate the African Youth Charter, and redouble efforts to implement UN Security Council Resolutions 2250 (2015) and 2419 (2018);

9. Also encourages Member States to domesticate the AU Continental Framework on Youth, Peace and Security, aligning with their respective context as necessary in line with national youth policies and national development plans and follow through with the development of National Action Plans (NAPs) in order to institutionalize meaningful participation ofthe youth in all levers of decision making;

10. Further encourages Member States to consider establishing Youth for Peace Chapters nationally and further strengthen available institutions and peace infrastructures; and underscores the need to replicate the holding of national youth dialogues to give the youth a platform to articulate their needs in promoting governance, peace, security and sustainable development;

11. Requests the AU Commission to regularly brief the Council on the progress ofthe 10-year implementation of the Continental Framework on Youth, Peace and Security, especially the development of NAPs; and to provide technical support to the Member States, within available budget resources, upon request, for the domestication of the Continental Framework on Youth, Peace and Security and the development ofthe NAPs;

12. Endorses the Declaration of the Continental Dialogue, the "Bujumbura Declaration on Youth, Peace and Security", and welcomes the recommendation to the AU to consider appointing H.E. Evariste Ndayishimiye, President of the Republic of Burundi, as the AU Champion for Youth, Peace and Security Agenda in recognition of his endeavors to capacitate the youth to drive the socio-economic development in Burundi; in this regard, requests the Government of Burundi to submit this request to the authorities ofthe AU for consideration;

13. Decidesto institutionalize a holding of an Annual Continental Dialogue on Youth, Peace and Security in Bujumbura, Burundi, to follow up on the implementation of decisions on this theme and the Bujumbura Declaration on Youth, Peace and Security;

14. Expresses sincere appreciation to the UNDP for its partnership and support provided for the convening of the Continental Dialogue in Bujumbura, Burundi; in this regard, encourages continued collaboration, synergy and complementarity in advancing the youth, peace and security agenda on the Continent;

15. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.