Africa’s Peace Summit in Angola

African foreign ministers gathered in Luanda, Angola, over the weekend for the 26th Extraordinary Session of the African Union’s Executive Council. The closed-door talks were a prelude to a summit of heads of state on Sunday, 30 August, dedicated to strengthening the continent’s conflict prevention and resolution mechanisms.

The theme—”Strengthening of Mechanisms for Conflict Prevention and Resolution in Africa”—was not chosen for its novelty, and its urgency was palpable.

The AU’s flagship “Silencing the Guns” initiative, originally set for 2020, was extended to 2030. With just over three years remaining, the guns are not only still firing; in many places, they are louder than ever.

From the Sahel to the Great Lakes

The geography of Africa’s peace deficit was laid bare.

“The peace and security challenges of our continent are well known, from Sudan to the eastern DRC, from Somalia to the Sahel, from Libya to northern Mozambique, passing through Madagascar,” said AU Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf.

He pointed to terrorism, violent extremism, piracy, transnational crime, and geopolitical competition as drivers of persistent crises.

The summit follows a mid-term strategic evaluation of the Silencing the Guns roadmap, which concluded that progress has been insufficient. A high-level meeting of the AU’s Peace and Security Council on 12 August had already flagged the need for “revitalisation”. The message from Luanda is that declarations alone will not suffice.

A call for concrete measures

The host, Angolan Foreign Minister Téte António, set the tone.

“AU member states must move away from empty political statements and focus on practical, verifiable measures to stop conflicts before they start,” he warned.

He stressed that the credibility of continental institutions depends on proactive crisis prevention, not reactive responses.

His words were echoed by Youssouf, who insisted that financing the peace agenda can “no longer depend primarily on external resources”.

He called for a strengthened AU Peace Fund and renewed support for UN Security Council Resolution 2719, which authorises UN-assessed contributions for AU-led peace support operations.

Political will, not paper promises

“Political will remains the cornerstone of our collective efforts,” Youssouf said. The summit is expected to produce a “Luanda Decision” and a plan of action with concrete, time-bound measures for implementation.

The gap between ambition and reality is wide. The AU’s conflict prevention mechanisms—the Continental Early Warning System, the Panel of the Wise, the Peace Fund—exist on paper. Their effectiveness, as António noted, depends on “solid political, technical, and financial support”.

The summit’s task is to ensure that no member state is left to confront instability alone.