The interlinkages between peace, security and development and their implications on realizing the African Union's vision of “creating an integrated prosperous and peaceful continent driven by its citizens”, are well established in the foundational instruments of the African Union. Moreover, the preamble of the Constitutive Act and the objectives of the Protocol Relating to the Establishment of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union, affirms the promotion of peace, security and stability as prerequisites for sustainable development.
The quest for promoting these interlinkages has perennially informed the activities of the Peace and Security Council's activities and the African Union Commission as a whole. This nexus approach has been complemented by the African Union's reflections on resilience, mitigation, and adaptation strategies given the heavy toll of climate change on peace and security.
Africa's development, peace and security, and integration landscape has registered several achievements over the last decade. These outcomes have included sustained levels of economic growth, several successful election cycles, and sustained cooperation between the AU and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and Regional Mechanisms (RMs) to promote integration and develop mechanisms to address complex security challenges.
However, the resurgence of unconstitutional changes of governments, with the varying intensities of armed conflicts, popular uprisings, violent confrontations, and violent extremism have continued to derail the continental development agenda.
Furthermore, Africa's vision for enhanced regional integration was brought to focus with the entry into force of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in January 2021 which marked a major milestone in Africa's regional integration agenda. In fact, the pace of ratification of the AfCFTA is unprecedented in the AU's history and the Agreement is now effective in the 41 countries (76% of the 54 signatories) that have already ratified it.
With an estimated Gross Domestic Product of USD 2.5 trillion and a market of over 1.2 billion people, the AfCFTA is expected to be a game-changer in Africa. It could significantly boost intra- regional trade, increase manufacturing output, and lift millions of people out of poverty.
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