Djibouti’s Mahmoud Ali Youssouf Elected New AU Commission Chair

Djibouti’s Foreign Minister, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, has been elected chair of the African Union Commission. He succeeds Moussa Faki, a former prime minister of Chad, who had led the 55-nation bloc since 2017. Youssouf defeated former Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Madagascar’s ex-Foreign Minister Richard Randriamandrato in a vote at the AU summit in Addis Ababa. This result is a disappointment for Odinga, a celebrated political figure in Kenya who served as prime minister in 2008. Youssouf, Djibouti’s foreign affairs minister since 2005, campaigned on peace and security. He inherits numerous challenges, including the rise of military juntas in West Africa, a Sudanese civil war that has led to the world’s largest displacement crisis, and ongoing conflicts in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The African Union Commission often faces criticism for its perceived slow response to such crises, underscoring the new chair’s pivotal role.

Source: AP