DRC President Felix Tshisekedi has endorsed Kenya’s former Prime Minister Raila Odinga for the African Union Commission (AUC) chairmanship.

In a statement on Thursday, August 15, 2024, moments after meeting Tshisekedi, Raila said they discussed foundational issues of security, development, and climate change.

“I met with DRC President Felix Tshisekedi today to discuss my AUC bid. Our conversation centred on the foundational issues of security, development, and climate change—essential for creating lasting prosperity and advancing our shared future. I thank him for his endorsement,” Raila stated.

Raila’s competitors

Currently, Raila is facing competition from Djibouti Foreign Minister Mahmoud Ali Youssou, former Mauritius Foreign Minister  Anil Kumarsingh Gayan and disgraced former Madagascar Foreign Minister Richard James Randriamandrato.

The candidates will initially face a panel for interviews, which will constitute Burundian academic Paul Ngarambe, Ethiopian diplomat Konjit SineGiorgis, Patrick Hayford of Ghana and Nozipho Joyce Mxakato-Diseko from South Africa.

The panellists will seek to know the candidates’ vision for Africa and assess their qualifications to lead the continental body.

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.

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 AUC chairperson is the chief executive officer, legal representative of the AU and the Commission’s Chief Accounting Officer. The Chairperson of the Commission is elected by the Assembly for a four-year term, renewable once.

The chairperson’s functions include overall responsibility for the Commission’s administration and finances; Promoting and popularising the AU’s objectives and enhancing its performance; consulting and coordinating with key stakeholders like member states and development partners, appointing and managing Commission staff and acting as a depository for all AU and OAU treaties and legal instruments.