Peace and Security Council
The Peace and Security Council (PSC) is the standing decision-making organ of the African Union (AU) charged with promoting peace, security, and stability across the continent through conflict prevention, management, and resolution.[1] Established under the Protocol Relating to the Establishment of the Peace and Security Council, adopted on 9 July 2002 in Durban, South Africa, and entering into force on 26 December 2003 after ratification by the required number of member states, the PSC serves as the centerpiece of the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA).[2][3] It comprises 15 AU member states elected by the AU Executive Council and endorsed by the Assembly, with 10 serving two-year terms and 5 serving three-year terms to ensure equitable regional representation: four from Western Africa, three each from Southern, Central, and Eastern Africa, and two from Northern Africa.[1][3] Membership selection prioritizes states with demonstrated commitments to peace, security, and AU financial obligations, though political considerations often influence outcomes.[3] The PSC's mandate includes early warning and preventive diplomacy, authorizing peace support operations, recommending AU intervention in cases of grave threats like genocide or war crimes, imposing sanctions against unconstitutional changes of government, and fostering cooperation with regional economic communities and international partners.[1] Since becoming operational in early 2004, it has authorized nine AU-mandated peace support missions, including the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), which deployed over 20,000 troops to combat al-Shabaab and stabilize the region from 2007 until its transition to the AU Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) in 2022.[1] These efforts have contributed to restoring order in post-conflict states like Burundi and Sudan, yet the PSC's interventions have often relied heavily on external funding from the United Nations and European Union, exposing dependencies that undermine African-led solutions.[1] Despite its ambitions, the PSC has encountered controversies over inconsistent decision-making, reluctance to address root causes such as governance deficits fueling conflicts, and structural gaps in its protocol that limit enforcement powers and adaptability to evolving threats like transnational terrorism and climate-induced instability.[4][5] Critics, including analyses from African security think tanks, highlight how competing national interests among members and chronic underfunding have hampered effectiveness, as seen in delayed or diluted responses to crises in Ethiopia's Tigray region and Sudan's ongoing civil war.[6] These challenges underscore the tension between the PSC's normative framework and practical implementation, prompting calls for reforms to enhance its autonomy and accountability.[7]Origins and Establishment
Pre-AU Security Frameworks
The Organization of African Unity (OAU), founded on May 25, 1963, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, by 32 independent African states, enshrined principles of non-interference, sovereignty, and peaceful settlement of disputes in its Charter, which limited its role in internal conflicts to diplomatic mediation upon request by member states.[8] This approach reflected the priority of decolonization and anti-apartheid struggles, with security efforts focused on supporting liberation movements through the OAU's Coordinating Committee for the Liberation of Africa, established in 1963 and headquartered in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, which channeled resources to armed groups in Portuguese colonies, Zimbabwe, and South Africa until the early 1990s.[9] However, the Charter's Article III emphasized mutual non-aggression and respect for borders, constraining proactive intervention and resulting in ad hoc responses to intra-state crises, such as failed mediation attempts in the Nigerian Civil War (1967–1970) and the Congo Crisis (1960–1965).[8] To formalize dispute resolution, the OAU established the Commission for Mediation, Conciliation, and Arbitration in 1964 under a dedicated protocol, headquartered in Addis Ababa, tasked with facilitating voluntary arbitration and advisory opinions on inter-state disputes.[10] Despite its mandate, the Commission handled only a handful of cases over three decades, undermined by the lack of enforcement mechanisms, member states' reluctance to submit to binding decisions, and resource shortages, rendering it largely ineffective for addressing the surge in civil wars during the 1980s and 1990s.[10] Responding to escalating intra-African conflicts, including those in Liberia (1989), Somalia (1991), and Rwanda (1994), the OAU Assembly of Heads of State and Government adopted the Cairo Declaration on July 31, 1993, establishing the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management, and Resolution (MCPMR) as a permanent structure within the OAU Secretariat.[11][12] The MCPMR, operationalized through a Central Organ with three levels—Authority of Heads of State, Ministerial Committee, and Ambassadorial Committee—aimed to anticipate conflicts via early warning, undertake diplomatic peacemaking, and support peace processes, while retaining the consensus-based decision-making and non-coercion principles of the OAU Charter.[10] It included a Conflict Management Division in Addis Ababa and regional offices, facilitating interventions such as mediation in Burundi (1994) and the Great Lakes region, though constrained by annual budgets under $1 million, dependence on voluntary contributions, and the inability to deploy military forces without host consent.[10][13] In June 1998, the OAU further refined the MCPMR through the Lomé Declaration, enhancing its early warning capabilities and authorizing observer missions, but persistent funding deficits and adherence to non-indifference exceptions only for extreme cases limited its scope.[10] These frameworks marked a tentative shift from strict non-interventionism toward preventive diplomacy, yet their reactive, under-resourced nature—evident in failures to halt genocides or widespread coups—highlighted the OAU's structural inadequacies, paving the way for the more robust African Peace and Security Architecture under the AU.[14][15]Adoption of the Constitutive Protocol
The Protocol Relating to the Establishment of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union, serving as its constitutive instrument, was adopted on July 9, 2002, during the inaugural Ordinary Session of the African Union Assembly in Durban, South Africa.[2][16] This protocol operationalized Article 5(2) of the AU Constitutive Act of 2000, which had provisionally established the PSC as one of the Union's principal organs but deferred detailed mandates and structures to subsequent elaboration.[2] The adoption reflected a consensus among African heads of state to institutionalize a continental mechanism for preventing, managing, and resolving conflicts, drawing from lessons of prior regional security shortcomings, such as the limited efficacy of the Organization of African Unity's non-interventionist approaches during crises like Rwanda in 1994.[1] The Durban session marked the formal transition from the OAU to the AU framework, with the protocol's text emphasizing proactive intervention principles, including the right to suspend governments that undermine democracy or commit atrocities, as outlined in Article 4(p) of the Constitutive Act.[17] Negotiations leading to adoption involved input from the AU's predecessor structures and regional economic communities, prioritizing collective security over strict sovereignty to address recurring intra-state conflicts.[1] The protocol required ratification by at least 15 member states to enter into force, a threshold met through subsequent accessions.[2] Entry into force occurred on December 26, 2003, following the 15th ratification deposit, enabling the PSC's operational launch in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with initial meetings commencing in 2004.[2][16] By March 2017, all 54 AU members had signed, and 53 had ratified, underscoring broad continental endorsement despite varying implementation capacities.[2] This adoption phase highlighted the AU's intent to position the PSC as Africa's primary security decision-making body, complementary to but distinct from United Nations frameworks.[1]Institutional Design
Membership and Representation
The Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union consists of fifteen member states, all possessing equal voting rights and serving without permanent membership status. Unlike the United Nations Security Council, the PSC features no veto powers or designated permanent seats, emphasizing collective decision-making among elected representatives. Members are elected by the AU Assembly, following recommendations from the AU Executive Council, to ensure broad continental participation in peace and security matters.[1][17] Election to the PSC adheres to specific criteria outlined in Article 5(2) of the Protocol Relating to the Establishment of the Peace and Security Council, adopted on July 9, 2002, in Durban, South Africa. These include a state's commitment to AU principles, contributions to peace and security efforts (with experience in peace support operations as an advantage), capacity to fulfill membership responsibilities, participation in conflict resolution at regional and continental levels, willingness to lead initiatives, financial contributions to the AU Peace Fund, adherence to constitutional governance, rule of law, and human rights per the Lomé Declaration, maintenance of adequately staffed missions at AU and UN headquarters, and fulfillment of financial obligations to the AU. The Assembly conducts periodic reviews to verify ongoing compliance with these standards.[17][1] To promote equitable representation, membership incorporates rotation and regional balance across Africa's five geographic regions, with seats allocated as follows: four to Western Africa, three each to Central, Eastern, and Southern Africa, and two to Northern Africa. Terms are staggered for continuity, with ten members serving two-year terms and five serving three-year terms; retiring members remain eligible for immediate re-election, allowing capable states repeated involvement without entrenching any single nation. This structure, operational since the PSC's activation on May 26, 2004, following the Protocol's entry into force on December 26, 2003, aims to reflect diverse African interests while enabling responsive action on conflicts.[1][17]| Region | Seats |
|---|---|
| Western Africa | 4 |
| Central Africa | 3 |
| Eastern Africa | 3 |
| Southern Africa | 3 |
| Northern Africa | 2 |