AU Summit wraps up, mapping 2026 priorities amid global geopolitical shifts
The assembly meeting, which brought together African leaders at the AU headquarters in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, from Saturday to Sunday, was held under the AU's 2026 theme: "Assuring Sustainable Water Availability and Safe Sanitation Systems to Achieve the Goals of Agenda 2063."
Delegates attend the closing ceremony inside the Nelson Mandela Hall during the 39th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa on February 15, 2026. (Xinhua)
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ADDIS ABABA — The 39th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU) successfully mapped out a path for Africa's future, with continental determination to ensure water security, stability and global representation, AU officials have said.
Addressing the media on the outcomes of the summit, AU Commission chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf and Burundian President Evariste Ndayishimiye, who is also the current chairperson of the AU, underpinned the summit's strategic and direction-setting deliberations.
Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, addresses a closing press conference during the 39th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa on February 15, 2026. (AFP)
The assembly meeting, which brought together African leaders at the AU headquarters in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, from Saturday to Sunday, was held under the AU's 2026 theme: "Assuring Sustainable Water Availability and Safe Sanitation Systems to Achieve the Goals of Agenda 2063."
Youssouf said African leaders reaffirmed their commitment to collective action and African-led solutions to a range of continental priorities, including deepening constitutional governance and stability, economic integration, climate action, institutional reform of the AU, enhancing the AU's participation in the Group of Twenty, as well as Africa's adequate representation in the global governance architecture, among others.
"The summit pinpointed our heads of state's zero tolerance for unconstitutional changes of government on our continent. We need peace and stability on this continent. The summit underscored the necessity and determination to pursue the goal of silencing the guns," he added.
Ndayishimiye, for his part, noted the summit's emphasis on enhancing sustainable water management to power Africa's socio-economic development ambitions.
Describing Africa's quest for water security as "existential" for the continent's future, he said the choice reflects a deep conviction, and that "without equitable access to water and sanitation, we cannot talk about public health or inclusive development."