President Ruto calls for comprehensive reforms to strengthen AU’s governance and oversight

By Robert Mutasi

Kenyan President William Ruto called for deep institutional reforms within the AU machinery to increase the authority and accountability toward serving the needs of its 55 member states.

At a meeting in State House, Nairobi, with Pan-African Parliament President Zephaniah Charumbira and other officials, President Ruto unfolded his vision for a more empowered and effective AU.

President Ruto said the AU needed drastic changes in aspects of governance and development to competently deal with challenges facing the continent in the 21st century.

He called for giving the Commission greater powers of making binding decisions, which he argued would ensure that responses by the organization to key issues facing Africa are streamlined.

"Institutional reforms of the African Union are what will make it genuinely serve its 55 members," President Ruto declared, and added that a stronger and independent AU Commission will be able to enforce decisions without delays caused either by bureaucrats or political roadblocks.

Another important feature of Ruto's reformist agenda involves ensuring empowerment and the expansion of powers of the Pan-African Parliament-the AU's legislative arm.

The PAP, as it currently stands, can play only an advisory role devoid of legislative powers over the AU Commission.

President Ruto leads the charge in ensuring that the PAP assumes parliamentary powers of legislation and oversight which will enable the institution to hold the Commission accountable.

The oversight and legislative powers over the Commission must be given to the Pan-African Parliament, he said, underlining that such oversight would ensure better governance and more confidence between African institutions and their citizens.

The AU has faced criticism in recent years for not being able to take up key issues that face the continent, including conflict resolution, economic integration, and governance.