DECISION ON THE PROGRESS REPORT ON THE STATUS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF
ASSEMBLY DECISION Assembly/AU/Dec.635(XXVIII) ON
THE INSTITUTIONAL REFORM OF THE AFRICAN UNION
Doc. Assembly/AU/3(XXX)
The Assembly,
Recalling Article 9(1) (a) of the Constitutive Act of the African Union on the powers of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the Union to determine the common policies of the African Union;
Further recalling the Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.635(XXVIII)on the Outcome of the Retreat of the Assembly of the Assembly of the African Union on the Institutional Reform of the African Union;
Reiterating its commitment to the reform and renewal of the Union as part of the effort to ensure we deliver Agenda 2063 an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in international arena;
Taking note of the Progress Report on the Implementation of the Assembly Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.635 on the African Union Institutional Reform
Welcoming the direction of the reform and the progress made so far in implementing the AU Institutional Reform Decision;
Commending the work of President Paul Kagame, President Alpha Conde and President Idriss Deby in supervising the implementation of the Institutional Reform process, as well as the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Mr. Moussa Mahamat Faki, for the progress made in operationalizing the institutional reforms;
Further commending Professor Pierre Moukoko Mbonjo for the excellent work undertaken in coordinating the reform implementation process and Dr. Donald Kaberuka, AU High Representative for Financing the Union for the excellent progress that has been made in advancing the Financing of the Union and Peace Fund agenda;
Having adopted the Progress Report on the Implementation of the Assembly Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.635(XXVIII) on the African Union Institutional Reform and its addendum.
DECIDES AS FOLLOWS:
On deepening the consultation process
That further consultations will take place on matters raised by some Member States in order to deepen the consensus and report to the next Summit;
That the Reform Troika shall be expanded to the Bureau of the Assembly and will collaborate with President Kagame in his capacity as Leader on the AU Institutional Reform process;
That fifteen (15) Ministers of Foreign Affairs, three per region, shall play an advisory role to the AU reform implementation process.
On women’s quotas
The Commission shall take specific measures to fully achieve the equal representation of women and men (50/50) in all senior level positions including Political and Special Appointees, Directors and Heads of Divisions by 2025 in the Organs and institutions of the Union;
The Commission shall take specific measures to fully achieve the equal representation of women and men in both general service and professional staff positions by 2025 in the organs and institutions of the Union;
The Staff Regulations and Rules of the Union shall be amended to ensure enhanced policy direction is provided and programs are designed to implement this decision;
The Commission shall report annually to the Assembly and in a standalone report on progress in implementing this decision, including specific measures taken to attain the quotas set for the organs and institutions of the Union in this decision.
On youth quotas and financing of youth empowerment programs in the Union
The Commission shall take specific measures to ensure that by 2025, 35% of the AU workforce will be made up of youth;
That from 2018 onwards, Member States shall fully finance the Youth Volunteer Program and the Junior Professionals Program from the regular budget of the Union;
That Member States shall accelerate the payment of their contributions to the African Youth Fund in line with the July 2017 Assembly Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.661 (XXIX) on the Establishment of the African Youth Fund;
The Commission shall report annually to the Assembly and in a standalone report on progress in implementing this decision, including specific measures taken to attain the quotas set for the organs and institutions of the Union and achieve the financing targets for the youth empowerment programs.
On the Ordinary Summit
That the move to one Ordinary Summit shall take effect from 2019 onwards.
On the delegation of budget adoption powers
To delegate, in line with the provisions of Article 9.2 of the Constitutive Act, the Assembly’s budget adoption powers and functions, to the Executive Council once the move to one Ordinary Summit comes into force;
That the Executive Council will adopt the budget of the Union in June/July of every year during a dedicated budget session; and
That, in line with the provisions of Article 10 (1) of the Constitutive Act, the June/July budget session of the Executive Council shall be composed of Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Ministers of Finance.
On a mechanism to ensure that legally binding decisions are implemented
Decision-making roles shall be properly delineated to ensure the disaggregation of the types of decisions that are taken at Assembly in line with Article 9 of the Constitutive Act and at the Executive Council, in line with Article 13 of the Executive Council;
Decisions shall be properly categorized, in line with Rule 33 of the Assembly Rules of Procedures and Rule 34 of the Executive Council Rules of Procedure, the type of decision and the associated obligations in terms of compliance and enforceability should be made explicit in any Decision that is being taken;
The financial and other resource implications of any decision being taken shall be provided as part of the supporting proposal;
That the capacity of the Office of the Legal Counsel shall be strengthened to ensure the proper categorization of Decisions and enhance the associated drafting of these Decisions;
That the co-ordination and monitoring capacity within the Bureau of the Chairperson of the AU Commission shall be strengthened with a focus on communication and information, monitoring, follow-up, reporting and liaison with Member States, AU Organs, institutions and AUC departments;
That monitoring and follow up of the implementation of decisions and polices shall become a core part of the Assembly, Executive Council, PRC and AU Commission’s business as follows:
The AU Commission and PRC meet monthly on the status of implementation of decisions and policies;
The June/July- mid-year Co-ordination meeting reviews the status of implementation;
The Executive Council mid-year meeting reviews of the status of implementation of decisions and policies;
The January Summit evaluates the status of implementation of decisions and policies and takes decisions on compliance;
That AU Member States shall take all measures to enhance implementation and reporting capacity at the Member State level, including through the designation of focal points;
On Financing the Union
That the membership of the Committee of Ministers of Finance shall be expanded from ten (10) to fifteen (15) members, i.e., three (3) Member States per region. In this regard, the Committee will be called the Committee of Fifteen Ministers of Finance (F15);
To endorse the F15 budget oversight role and function based on the following six primary duties:
Comparing the expenditure and the rate of results achievement;
Establishing a baseline for the following financial year’s budget;
Ensuring alignment between the budget and results achieved;
Ensuring the link between revenue forecasts and affordability;
Ensuring that the proposed budget does not pose any unsustainable risk over the long term.
To adopt the ‘golden rules’ that provides a framework for financial management and accountability principles at the African Union;
To request the AU Commission to update the AU Financial Rules and Regulations taking into account the newly adopted Golden Rules and mechanisms for the involvement of the F15 on budgetary and financial issues of the Union;
That the F15 shall fully participate in the statutory budget process as follows:
Sub-Committees of Programmes and Conferences (CPC) and of General Supervision and Co-ordination on Budgetary, Financial and Administrative Matters (GSCBFAM) of the PRC shall sit jointly with F15 Technical Experts to examine the budget priorities and proposals;
The Sub-Committees shall submit their recommendations to the Permanent Representatives’ Committee (PRC) for consideration;
The PRC shall consider the report and submit its recommendations to the Executive Council for consideration;
The Executive Council shall be constituted by Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Ministers of Finance for the purpose of the budget session;
The Executive Council shall, prior to its consideration of the budget, receive the recommendations of the F15 on the budget;.
The Executive Council shall submit the budget to the AU Assembly for adoption;
Once the move to one Ordinary Summit comes into force, the Executive Council in the configuration outlined in 5 (iii) shall adopt the budget.
That Member States shall for the time being retain any surplus from the levy after funding the budget of the Union in line with their annual assessed contribution;
To adopt the Instrument Relating to the Enhanced Governance and Management structure of the Peace Fund and requests the Commission to accelerate implementation.