Decision on the Report of the Peace and Security Council (PSC) on the Implementation of the AU Master Roadmap of Practical Steps to Silence the Guns in Africa by year 2020 - Doc. Assembly/AU/8(XXXI)

DECISION ON THE REPORT OF THE PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL (PSC) ON
THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE AU MASTER ROADMAP OF PRACTICAL
STEPS TO SILENCE THE GUNS IN AFRICA BY YEAR 2020

Doc. Assembly/AU/8(XXXI)

The Assembly,

1. TAKES NOTE of the report of the Peace and Security Council (PSC) on the Implementation of the AU Master Roadmap of Practical Steps to Silence the Guns in Africa by Year 2020;

2. RECALLS the Organization of African Unity/ African Union (OAU/AU) 50^th Anniversary Solemn Declaration adopted on 25 May 2013, in Addis Ababa, in which the Assembly of the Union pledged not to bequeath the burden of wars to the next generation of Africans and undertook to end all wars in Africa by the year 2020, as well as decision Assembly/AU/Dec.630 (XXVIII) by which the 28^th ordinary session of the Assembly, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 30 - 31 January 2017, adopted, following submission by the Peace and Security Council (PSC) the AU Master Roadmap of Practical Steps for Silencing the Guns in Africa by the Year 2020;

3. EXPRESSES DEEP CONCERN over the persistence of old conflicts and the outbreak of fresh ones, as well as the continued proliferation of threats, especially terrorism and violent extremism, to peace and security in Africa. The Assembly REITERATES its readiness to effectively put an end to wars and REAFFIRMS its determination to take all necessary measures to uproot the underlying causes of conflicts and crises which continue to undermine the continent’s social-economic transformation and development;

4. COMMENDS the efforts deployed by the Peace and Security Council (PSC) in championing and steering forward the implementation of the African Union Master Roadmap (AURM) on Practical Steps to Silence the Guns and ENCOURAGES all Member States to continue their engagement in this endeavour for a conflict-free Continent. The Assembly REITERATES ITS CALL to the Regional Economic Communities/Regional Mechanisms (RECs/RMs), civil society organizations, private sector and the international community as a whole to ensure that, beyond slogans, they collectively contribute in a practical manner towards the realization of a conflict-free Continent;

5. FURTHER COMMENDS the Republics of Zambia and Zimbabwe, respectively, for being the first Member States to submit their written reports on their efforts in implementation of the AUMR and CALLS ON other Member States to emulate this commendable example;

6. ENCOURAGES all Member States to continue demonstrating more political commitment and stronger engagement to ensure the creation of requisite conditions, particularly in taking actions to address root causes of conflicts for ending wars in Africa. In this respect, the Assembly EMPHASIZES that the remaining period to the deadline of 2020 to silence the guns should be put to a maximum effective use by all stakeholders in the implementation of the AUMR;

7. COMMENDS the RECs/RMs, particularly the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), Southern African Development Community (SADC), East African Community (EAC) and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for submitting their reports and for their sustained efforts in implementation of the ALIMR. The Assembly FURTHER COMMENDS the Committee of Intelligence and Security Services of Africa (CISSA) and the Institute for Peace and Security Studies (IPSS) for also providing updates on the ALIMR implementation. In this regard, the Assembly APPEALS to those who have not yet done so, to ensure that they work towards submitting reports for the PSC on the ALIMR to the February 2019 AU Summit. The Assembly REQUESTS the RECs/RMs to each appoint a Special Envoy on the implementation of the AUMR, with a view to boosting and complement the efforts of the AU High Representative on Silencing the Guns, to accelerate the implementation of the AUMR;

8. ENDORSES the efforts of the PSC for initiating the development of the draft resolution on Silencing the Guns in Africa and for the steps that it has taken, particularly those aimed at having it adopted on by the UN Security Council;

9. STRONGLY APPEALS to all Member States to start planning for activities to mark the Africa Amnesty Month, during the upcoming September 2018, and ensure that all citizens are made aware of this exercise. In this context, the Assembly FURTHER APPEALS to the Member States to widely publicize the observance and execution of the Africa Amnesty Month, with the view to mobilizing civilians/citizens to voluntarily surrender illegally owned weapons and inspire them on the positive effects in the society. The Assembly COMMENDS the support provided by the AU Commission to Member States towards the conduct of activities during the observance of the Africa Amnesty Month for collection of illegal owned arms/weapons;

10. ENDORSES the proposal of the PSC to include studies relating to peace in Africa with a view to promoting the culture of peace, unity and tolerance in the communities in the Member States national education curricula, within the context of the implementation of the AUMR. In this regard, the Assembly REQUESTS all Member States to incorporate studies related to peace in their respective national education curricula;

11. As part of efforts to stem out root causes of conflict, the Assembly EMPHASIZES THE IMPORTANCE of Member States undertaking targeted interventions to prevent cross border trafficking, including strengthening inter-state security cooperation and community policing to combat movement of terrorists, arms trafficking, human and drug trafficking, illicit financial flows, and other contraband goods that contribute to fuelling conflicts in Africa. The Assembly STRESSES THE NEED to capitalize on and strengthen existing regional and international police and intelligence cooperation mechanisms, particularly through the services of African Union Mechanism for Police Cooperation (AFRIPOL). In this regard, Assembly COMMENDS the Government of Algeria for its support provided, namely training on the use of the African Police Communication System (AFSECOM) and provision of the communication equipment for the operationalization of AFSECOM to all Member States;

12. COMMENDS the Commission for its efforts to enhance regional security cooperation and WELCOMES the establishment of the Eastern Africa fusion and Liaison Unit (EA-FLU) in Uganda for strengthening counter-terrorism capability in Eastern Africa, as part of the Djibouti Process. In this regard, the Assembly CALLS ON all Member States of the Djibouti Process to expedite the deployment of their officers to the EA-FLU;

13. UNDERSCORES THE NEED for putting in place the measures and capacities required to effectively manage stockpiles of all armed security institutions, including establishing accounting and accountability frameworks, enhancing physical structures, and improving arms procurement and disposal practices to prevent excessive accumulation;

14. ENCOURAGES all Member States to promote civilian disarmament by addressing the various factors, particularly poverty, exclusion, marginalization, unemployment and insecurity, which drive the demand for possessing and uses of arms among civilians, in line with the Africa Amnesty Month. In this regard, the Assembly URGES all Member States to consider a range of interventions including job creation projects, climate change mitigation, strengthening formal and traditional justice and reconciliation mechanisms, providing economic alternatives to criminal activities, and alter cultural values that condone violence. The Assembly UNDERLINES THE IMPORTANCE of pursuing efforts to implement effective and nationally owned disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) interventions as part of post-conflict stabilization and development efforts;

15. EMPHASIZES the imperative and absolute need for Member States to enhance preventive diplomacy and conflict prevention in the efforts to silence the guns and promote peace and security Continent;

16. STRESSES the importance of participation of women and youth in the full cycle of peace processes in the continent with a view to ensuring that the need for women and youth is fully included in the implementation of the AUMR. The Assembly WELCOMES the validation of the Continental Results Framework for Monitoring and Reporting on Women Peace and Security Agenda in Africa by

Member States and Regional Economic Communities/Regional Mechanisms (RECs/RMs), that have put already in place national and regional action plans, as a tool to enhance delivery by Member States and other stakeholders on commitments on Women, peace and security in Africa and in addressing issues of impunity;

17. APPEALS to all Member States to provide reports to the PSC, through the AU Commission, on the implementation of the AUMR and to pay due attention to all the five key aspects as integrated in the AUMR, namely political, social, economic, environmental and legal aspects, with the view to enabling Africa and its people to see the actual trends in the AUMR implementation process and address timeously gaps whenever and where they appear.