The African Union Commission is set to hold an election in February 2025 to select the next Chairperson. There are three candidates for the Chairperson post from Kenya, Djibouti and Madagascar; and six candidates for the Deputy Chairperson position with two from Algeria, two from Egypt as well, Libya and Morocco.
The race for the Chairperson position continues to gain traction across the African continent, and ahead of the highly contested election, Nairobi Post now looks at the Executive Profiles that the three candidates submitted with their resumes for the top job.
In providing the highlights of his relevant skills, experience and accomplishments, Kenya’s Raila Odinga said he served as the Prime Minister in the Government of National Unity from 2008 to 2013 where he presided over the execution of government functions while working closely with the late (former) President Mwai Kibaki.
“I played a pivotal role in implementing transformative political , socio-economic ad security sector reforms, most notably the promulgation of the progressive Constitution of Kenya 2010. During this period, I represented Kenya at high level and multilateral fora, applying my leadership and diplomatic acumen on the global stage,” said Mr Odinga in part.
He also mentioned that he was the first elected Member of Parliament for Langata Constituency which he represented for 20 years, served as Minister for Energy under former President Daniel Moi and Minister for Roads, Public Works and Housing under President Mwai Kibaki.
“As AU High Representative for Infrastructure in Africa (2018-2023), I gained invaluable insights into Africa’s infrastructure opportunities and challenges. I coordinated the implementation of the Program for Infrastructure Development in Africa, rallying political support from Member States and RECs to advance Africa’s infrastructure connectivity and integration,” added Mr Odinga in part.
He noted that he developed, “deep and extensive knowledge” of policy, politics and diplomacy at the local, national and international stage, and was honored to have received several prestigious awards including the Elder of the Golden Heart of Kenya, Greater Good Award (Mizani Africa), Global Award (BEFTA) and Golden Jubilee Award (Kenya).
Campaigning against Mr Odinga are Djibouti’s His Excellency Mahmoud Ali Youssouf and Madagascar’s His Excellency Richard Randriamandrato.
Mr Youssouf noted that he had 30 years of “solid experience” in diplomacy and governance. He served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and established various directories that revitalized the ministry and enabling it to effectively communicate with the world, ensure compliance with international legal standards and mobilize the Djiboutian diaspora for the development of his country.
He mentioned being particularly proud of one of his achievements- the Institut des Etudes Diplomatiques, an institution dedicated to training top Djiboutian diplomats.
Mr Youssouf also served as the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Arab League on two occasions (2007, 2017) as well as the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the (OIC in 2012. He was also involved in the conflict resolution in the Horn of Africa.
In Mr Randriamandrato’s executive profile, he mentioned that he has enjoyed a career that allowed him to, “strengthen my abilities to analyze circumstances realistically in the defense of the interests of the institutions which have placed their trust in me to carry out a mission or to exercise responsibility.”
Mentioning his acquisition of leadership and management skills to promote “good, collective synergy within organizations”, Mr Randriamandrato revealed he worked at COMESA for 10 years as the Secretary General.
“Mr Erastust Mwencha (Kenya) and Sindiso Ngwenya (Zimbabwe) with whom I worked with directly and who knew how to distribute responsibilities and entrust delicate missions to management personnel. I’ve learned from the how to create the right environment for distributed leadership at COMESA’s management level. They taught me basics of good leadership which isn’t necessarily hierarchical. Leadership is about ownership, taking responsibility and accountability. It’s a good and ethical principle I stand by today,” said Mr Randriamandrato.
Mr Randriamandrato also served a Minister in the Ministry of Economy and Finance from 2019 to 2021 with 10,000 agents and in the Foreign Affairs with 300 agents in 2021.
“I have managed moments of tension. I have experienced successes but also failures during crisis such as the COVID 19 pandemic. On the other hand, discretion being a quality required in diplomacy, I have set myself the objective of respecting divergent points of view including with the President of the Republic. I believe that the basic diplomatic skills I’ve acquired, informational, relational and operational, will be an asset in leading the AU Commission,” said Mr Randriamandrato in his executive profile summary.
