The President of Kenya who also serves as the Champion of Institutional Reforms at the African Union, William Ruto, has disclosed that Africa spends an estimated $18 billion annually to address security challenges and ongoing conflicts.
In his address at the AU Retreat on Institutional Reforms, he noted that, between April and June 2024 alone, a total of 1,000 terrorism-related incidents were recorded resulting in 4,818 deaths.
These numbers according to him represent a developing humanitarian crisis as conflicts, terrorism, and political instability continue to disrupt lives and communities.
President Ruto on the other hand called for urgent action to address the root causes of insecurity incidents across the continent.
“The continent is facing unprecedented challenges regarding peace and security. Conflict continues to rob Africa of its potential costing continents an estimated $18 billion annually and displacing millions of people.
“Africa today, is home to 35 million internally displaced persons, 8.9 million refugees, 1.1 million asylum seekers and a million stateless people.
“Between April and June 2024 alone, a total of 1,000 terrorism-related incidents were recorded across Africa resulting in 4,818 deaths. This is an existential moment for our continent. The African Union in its current architecture and configuration is incapable of addressing these complex dynamics and challenges and there is an urgent need for immediate revitalisation of the peace and security architecture,” he stated.
Meanwhile, President John Dramani Mahama also expressed concerns over the African Union’s reliance on external funding, indicating that it impedes the organisation’s ability to set its own agenda.
