AU – A Bulwark for Peace & Peaceful Settlement of Conflicts in Africa

The Top of FormThe The Tthe Government of Ethiopia and TPLF signed a peace agreement in South Africa on November 2, 2022 ending the two-year-long conflict in northern Ethiopia. It has helped to keep on track the reform program that was challenged by the two years’ war.

The African Union played a historic role in soliciting and coordinating a viable solution for the conflict after laboring for almost a year to design a permanent agreement that was duly agreed and accepted not only by the signatories but also by all international peace loving countries and global institutions.

The AU assigned a team composed of former heads of state and senior experts. The terms of the agreement which were carefully crafted by the team of facilitators were in tandem with Ethiopia’s steadfast position for peace without compromising the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the nation. According to Article 1 of the Agreement a permanent cessation of hostilities was agreed to create a conducive political and military favorable situation for disarming the TPLF, restoring peace through the total control of northern Ethiopia by the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF), reinstating constitutional order that was disrupted during the war and conducting massive relief food supply, rehabilitation of destroyed service delivery institutions across Tigray, Amhara and Afar regions.

Today, the Ethiopian Government has fulfilled almost all of its obligations mentioned in the agreement as free flow of relief food is ensured; all power supply and telephone networks, most of water supply systems, banks and health service delivery networks are restored. Furthermore, the federal government has been exerting efforts with strong commitment to implementing the peace agreement.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Demeke Mekonnen told the foreign ministers of AU member states at the opening of the 42nd Ordinary Session of the Executive Council of African Union held in Addis Ababa this week that Ethiopia is redoubling effort to ensure the full implementation of the agreement pointing out that the implementation of the peace agreement is on course. “We have taken measures to restore services interrupted by the conflict. We are also working with African Union commission to support the work of monitoring and verification and compliance mechanism. This mechanism consists of a joint committee and a team of African experts. The team is now witnessing major development in the area of disarmament.”

Government structures at all levels will need to focus on the dividends of peace as the agreement closes this conflict peacefully. Moreover, various teams have been organized to expedite efforts of rehabilitation and reconstruction and to undergo public and diplomatic engagements. Similarly, the government has continued coordinating humanitarian agencies in providing humanitarian supplies to the Tigray region. UNOCHA, UNICEF WFP, International Red Cross and Red Crescent and a host of local and international NGOs have resumed operations in northern Ethiopia.

Many lauded the peace deal and the commitment of both parties to silencing the guns and resetting Ethiopia on a path of peace. Ethiopians and fellow Africans wholeheartedly welcomed this outcome, expressing their pride that the peace process was led by the African Union (AU). AU Political Affairs, Peace and Security Commissioner Bankole Adeoye lauded the steady and great steps made by the Government of Ethiopia and TPLF in implementing the Pretoria peace agreement. The Commissioner said there are many lessons to learn from the Pretoria peace deal that the AU is ready to support and provide technical assistance to make sure peace prevails. “We have been working on the implementation and we are pleased with the steady and very great steps being made by the parties through demobilization, disarmament, re-integration and, of course, the monitoring of the peace agreement. We are very pleased also that the Ethiopian government has restored many of the services in the region. The people of Tigray will be benefiting peace dividend from this peace process.”

Many partner countries including the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and the European Union expressed their optimism and commitment to supporting the process. They have also pledged to stand ready to work alongside the Government of Ethiopia to support the recovery of conflict-affected areas. According to the Ministry of Finance, the resource needed to reconstruct the conflict-affected Regions (Tigray, Amhara and Afar) is estimated to be 20 billion US dollars. The Federal Government is determined to lead the effort to rebuild the region by expending the necessary finance for rehabilitation and development programs in the region.

The fact that the AU has successfully negotiated the peace talks in Ethiopia vividly indicate the fact that the AU has the necessary capacity and expertise to manage negotiations in the continent to end conflicts peacefully. Second the Agreement is the most conspicuous evidence that Africans are capable of resolving their own problems in the ways that suits them, that is the African way of resolving conflicts. Third, the whole process and steps employed in the process of the peace talks is a dress rehearsal for any similar conflicts that could flare up in the continent. The AU has proved that Africans can resolve their problems with no need for the interference of foreign countries in the name of mediation.

As the leaders of the country have repeatedly stressed, that Ethiopia is indebted to the AU for the wisdom, skill and patience that the continental organization has exhibited in taking the lion’s share in resolving the conflict that was ignited in northern Ethiopia.

Source: Ethiopia News Agency