Listen to This Article Enhance your reading experience by listening to this article.

Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga will on Wednesday, June 5, 2024, update the nation on the status of the latter’s bid for the African Union Commission (AUC) chairmanship.

The address, scheduled for Wednesday at 9:00 am, will happen at the Office of the Prime Cabinet Secretary at the Kenya Railways Headquarters.

Currently, Raila is facing competition from Djibouti’s Foreign Affairs Minister Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, Somalia’s former Foreign Affairs Minister Fawzia Yusuf Adam and Seychelles’ former Vice President Vincent Meriton.

The four candidates from the Eastern Africa region are seeking to succeed the current chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat, who has held the position since 2017.

In March, the African Union Executive Council decided that the next AUC chairperson would come from the Eastern Africa region.

In a statement on March 15, 2024, the executive said the region will be the only one submitting candidates for the position.

“The African Union Executive Council today unanimously adopted a critical decision that it is the turn of the Eastern Africa region to submit candidates for the position of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC). The elections will be held in February 2025,” the statement read in part.

The decision also provides that the Northern Africa region will front candidates for the Deputy Chairperson while the other three regions, Central, Southern and Western, will compete for the six positions of commissioners.

The campaign to replace the current AUC chair Moussa Faki is set to begin once all interested candidates submit their applications officially.

AUC chairmanship requirements

Suitable candidates are required to have a Master’s degree in a wide range of academic fields including Law, International Relations, Economics, Diplomacy, Management, Business Administration, Political Science, Social Sciences or a closely related field from a recognised institution.

According to the AU, a PhD in Law, International Relations, Diplomacy, Management, Business Administration, Political Science, Social Sciences or a closely related field from a recognized institution is an added advantage.

The AUC chair is elected on a four-year term renewable once and serves as the Chief Executive Officer, Legal Representative of the Union and the Accounting Officer of the Union.