AFRICAN UNION <A/n jUhi
UNION AFRICAINE
UNIAO AFRICANA
P. O. Box 3243, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Tel.: (251-11) 551 38 22 Fax: (251-11) 519321
Email: situationroom@africa-union.org
PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL 1081st MEETING
4 MAY 2022
ADDIS ABABA
PSC/PR/COMM. 1081(2022)
COMMUNIQUE
Adopted by the Peace and Security Council at its 1081st meeting held on 4 May 2022, on the Briefing on the State of Humanitarian Actions in Africa, which coincided with the Commemoration of 30 years of Cooperation between the AU and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) signed on 4 May 1992:
The Peace and Security Council,
Recalling all AU decisions on humanitarian actions in Africa, particularly Decision [EX.CL/Dec.1145 9(XL)] adopted by the AU Executive Council at its 40th Ordinary Session of February 2022; decision [Assembly/AU/Dec.604(XXVI)] which adopted the Common African Position on Humanitarian Effectiveness and endorsed the recommendation for the establishment of the African Humanitarian Agency (AfHA) to ensure effectiveness of AU responses to humanitarian crises on the Continent; and also recalling its Communiques [PSC/AHG/COMM.1043(2021)] adopted at its 1043rd meeting at the level of Heads of State and Government held on 29 October 2021; and [PSC/PR/COMM. 1025 (2021)] adopted at its 1025th meeting held on 25 August 2021; as well as Press Statement [PSC/PR/BR (DCCLXII)], adopted at its 762nd meeting held on 9 April 2018;
Faithful to the provisions of Articles 6(f) and 7(p) of the Protocol Relating to the Establishment of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union, respectively stipulating as one of the functions of the Council, humanitarian action and disaster management, and empowering the Council to support and facilitate humanitarian action in situations of armed conflicts or major natural disasters in the African Continent;
Noting the opening remarks by the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Cameroon to the AU, and Chairperson of the PSC for the month of May 2022, H.E. Ambassador Churchill Ewumbue-Monono and the presentation by the Dr. Margaret Agama-Anyatei, Acting Director, Directorate of Health and Humanitarian Affairs of the AU Commission; as well as statements by the representative ofthe United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), and the President of the International Committee ofthe Red Cross (ICRC).
Acting under Article 7 of its Protocol, the Peace and Security Council,
Expresses deep concern over the continued prevalence of complex, multifaceted and, at times, unprecedented humanitarian crises in the Continent, exacerbated by climate-change related and public health emergences, amongst other hazards, especially in areas that are already fragile due to terrorism and violent conflicts, cause food insecurity and forced displacements;
Also expresses deep concern over the increasing number of vulnerable populations in Africa, notably refugees, internally displaced persons, returnees, asylum-seekers, stateless persons, missing persons and their diminishing resilience capacity; and underlines, in this regard,
PSC/PR/COMM. 1081(2022) the imperative of inter-African cooperation and an action-oriented approach for strengthening the resilience of these vulnerable populations;
Underscores the need to address the root causes and drivers of humanitarian crises and to ensure that the Continental Early Warning System incorporates multi-hazard early warning and early action systems, including the development of inter-operational situation rooms at continental, regional and national levels to enable timely interventions to address the diverse humanitarian disaster risks and their potential consequences;
Commends Member States hosting refugees in their countries, albeit with limited capacities; encourages State Parties to the UN Convention on Refugees of 1951 and the OAU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problem in Africa of 1969, the AU Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons (The Kampala Convention) of 2009, the Humanitarian Policy Framework (HPF), the Disaster Management Policy and the Africa Risk Capacity (ARC), to continue to fulfil their humanitarian responsibilities as provided for in these instruments;
Requests the AU Commission, working closely with Member States to expedite action in finalization of the AU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Statelessness in Africa; and appeals to the international community to provide adequate and flexible support to countries hosting refugees to allow them to effectively respond to the needs of the refugees taking into consideration unpredictable nature of humanitarian needs;
Emphasizes the imperative of further strengthening the institutional capacities and promoting enhanced collaboration among Member States, and Regional Economic Communities and Regional Mechanisms (RECs/RMs) in the area of humanitarian action;
Takes note of the challenges faced by humanitarian agencies, including access, shrinking humanitarian space and embezzlement of humanitarian aid; condemns attacks against humanitarian agencies; and strongly urges all parties to armed conflicts to facilitate the work of humanitarian aid agencies and to guarantee their safety and security;
Encourages Member States, that have not yet done so, to sign, ratify and domesticate African and international instruments relating to refugees, internally displaced persons, as well as vulnerable populations and humanitarian assistance in general; and to implement the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants [A/RES/71/1], adopted by the UN General Assembly at its 71st Session held on 19 September 2016;
Commends the UNHCR and ICRC, as well as other international humanitarian aid agencies, partners, non-governmental organizations, civil society organizations and the private sector for their contributions towards addressing the humanitarian situations in the Continent, and underlines the need for enhanced, predictable, consistent and sustainable international support to Member States hosting refugees in Africa;
Applauds the ICRC's 30 years of cooperation with the OAU/AU in promoting humanitarian principles, humanitarian actions, International Humanitarian Law and humanitarian diplomacy in Africa;
Reiterates the importance of redoubling efforts in resilience building at all levels, as well as to expedite the development of disaster risk management policies, strategies and establishment of institutional mechanisms, based on integrated and multi-hazardous approaches, as well as to ensure that humanitarian responses are context specific;
Recalls the primary responsibility of countries hosting refugees in the process of their registration and documentation, which is essential to protect them from any form of exploitation, particularly the recruitment of children into armed militias; in this regard, stresses the vital importance of supporting registration and documentation operations as key tools for the integrity of refugee protection systems and as a key indicator in the evaluation of humanitarian assistance to refugees;
Reiterates the importance of building impactful alliances and synergies, as well as enhanced coordination amongst AU Departments and Programmes, including the AU Humanitarian Response Mechanism, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa- CDC), AU Centre for Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Development (AU-PCRD), Disaster Risk Reduction Unit within the Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment (DARBE) and African Risk Capacity, amongst others, in order to ensure rationalized utilization of scarce resources, effective synergies and also to avoid duplication of efforts;
Underscores the importance for the AU to play a lead role in addressing humanitarian situations in Africa; and while welcoming the progress made thus far, stresses the importance of expediting the full operationalization of the African Humanitarian Agency (AfHA); underlines the need for the mobilization of predictable, reliable and sustainable resources, including financial resources, ideally, from within the Continent, in order to ensure, once it is established, its independence and effectiveness in fulfilling the AU humanitarian responsibilities; and in this context, reiterates its encouragement for Member States to increase AU Humanitarian Fund from 2% to 4% of Member States' assessed contributions, pursuant to Decision [Ex.CL/Dec.567 (XVII)] adopted by the Executive Council at its 17th Ordinary Session held in Kampala, Uganda, from 19 to 23 July 2010;
Requests the Commission to continue to provide technical capacity building support to Member States and RECs/RMs to enable them to more effectively fulfil their humanitarian responsibilities, as well as to expedite the establishment of Regional Humanitarian Centers in the
PSC/PR/COMM. 1081(2022)
five geographical regions of the AU, to enable close cooperation with AU Member States and RECs/RMs at national, regional and Continental levels;
Directs the Commission, working in collaboration with relevant AU humanitarian partners such as the UNHCR, ICRC and International Office for Migration (IOM), to urgently prepare a detailed report on the data, registration and documentation of vulnerable populations in Africa, including their different categories for effective humanitarian actions and submit the report to Council, as soon as possible for consideration;
Urges all parties to conflicts in Africa to respect humanitarian principles, international human rights and humanitarian law to enhance humanitarian action in the Continent;
Also reiterates its support for and looks forward to the successful organization of the upcoming Extraordinary Humanitarian Summit and Donors Pledging Conference, scheduled to be convened on T1 May 2022, in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, which among other objectives, seeks to mobilize the required financial resources for effectively addressing humanitarian situations in Africa; and in this context, encourages all Member States, RECs/RMs, humanitarian agencies, partners, civil society, the private sector and the rest ofthe international community, to support, participate and make generous pledges at the Summit;
Also looks forward to the successful convening of the 4th Ordinary Session of the AU Specialized Technical Committee on Migration, Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons, at Ministerial level, and in person, from23 to 24 May 2022, in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea; and
Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.