The United States and African Union Commission (AUC) convened the 9th Annual U.S.-AUC High-Level Dialogue on November 1 in Washington, D.C., led by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and AUC Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat. The United States and AUC reaffirmed their strong commitment to partnership grounded in shared values to address global issues including democracy and governance, peace and security, climate, and food security in line with AU Agenda 2063 Goals and Aspirations. Secretary Blinken and Chairperson Faki discussed shared priorities which included stemming the recent tide of military takeovers by promoting democratic governance and ensuring the composition and leadership of international institutions reflects the critical role of African voices in global governance.
Peace and Security: U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Phee and African Union Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security Bankole Adeoye outlined the shared principles that underpin the U.S.-AUC security relationship. In line with Agenda 2063, Aspiration 3 on Good Governance, they agreed unconstitutional transfers of power only serve to further deteriorate governance and security conditions within the affected countries and have negative ripple effects in the region. They discussed collaboration and partnership between the United States and African Union in addressing the continent’s security challenges in the Sahel, Sudan, Somalia, and Great Lakes region and also agreed on the need to find a solution for sustainable funding of African Union peace support operations.
Climate and Food Security: U.S. interagency and AUC officials discussed how to deepen the U.S.-AU Strategic Partnership on Food Security and further collaboration on promoting climate resilience, food security, and sustainable development across the African continent in line with AU Agenda2063, Aspiration 1 on inclusive growth and sustainable development. USAID Assistant Administrator Dina Esposito underscored the United States’ support for AU continental strategies on food and climate through initiatives like the President’s Emergency Plan for Adaptation and Resilience (PREPARE). AU Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment (ARBE) H.E. Josefa Sacko shared African priorities for COP28 and described the AU’s goals for attracting more green investment to the African continent, including in support for just energy transitions. Both sides discussed how to continue advancing the U.S.-AU Strategic Partnership on Food Security agreed to in December 2022 and how to help make African agriculture and food systems more resilient in the face of climate change, including through initiatives like Feed the Future and the related Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils (VACS) developed by Special Envoy for Global Food Security Dr. Cary Fowler, as well as the Agricultural Innovation Mission for Climate.
African Leaders Summit Structure: U.S. interagency and AUC officials discussed progress toward key initiatives and deliverables announced at the December 2022 U.S. Africa Leaders Summit. During the working lunch, Special Presidential Representative for U.S. Africa Leaders Summit Implementation Ambassador Johnnie Carson also provided an overview of recommendations to strengthen our partnerships with African leaders, along with mechanisms for institutionalizing a U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit structure and maintaining follow-up on summit commitments. Topics included the travel of senior U.S. Government officials to the continent, the recent inaugural meeting of the President’s Advisory Council on African Diaspora Engagement (PAC-ADE), and updates on programming related to digital transformation, trade and investment, democracy, food security, and health security.