The idea of an African Union began with the vision of a United States of Africa by the late

Libyan leader Muammar al-Qaddafi, with the view of uniting the African continent as one
unit and expediting the process of economic and political integration in the continent. The
AU superseded the Organisation for African Union through the progression of four summits
that started in 1999 up to the AUs final launch in Durban South Africa on 9 July 2002. One
of the vision, objectives and principles of the AU is to accelerate the political and socio
economic integration of the continent. The task on this paper is to discuss the factors that are
slowing down the efforts of the AU in promoting or advancing political and economic
stability in Africa. The paper will discuss such factors as limited technology capabilities, poor
economic structures, lack of education, high transportation costs, over dependence on foreign
aid, civil wars, corruption and insufficient technology application and bad leadership. Key
terms shall be defined and a conclusion will capture the major highlights of the discussion
This paper views political as relating to government and public affairs. Economy is the
system used for managing recourses or wealth in a society. The MacMillan English
Dictionary (2008) defines undermine as to make something or someone gradually less
effective, confident or successful. Another dictionary adds that undermining means to erode
the base or foundation of something to make it weak, damaged or collapse gradually.
According to http://www.wikipedia.org the African Union (AU) is a union consisting of 54
African states. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco.The Concise Oxford
Dictionary just highlights that Africa relates to the African continent and the people of
African black descent.
According to www.hope-project.org, one of the factors is limited technology capabilities. The
website implies that technological capability refers to how a country can access, create and
utilise science and information and communication technology (ICT) for solving socio
economic issues. The same website notes that the world is being driven by technological
innovation. Major economic sectors such as health, agriculture, transportation, and clean
water are all based ultimately on science and ICT. For example, in the health sector, there is
need to facilitate the training of specialised medical personal and the right medical
technological equipment to easy the burden of patients to find large sums of foreign currency
to go to Western or Indian countries for medical treatment. The situation is being aggravated
by countries such as the UK, Australia, and Canada etc that have been causing brain drain for
the specialised qualified personnel of Africa. This has seen the continent operating with
skeletal qualified staff in most economic sectors and as a result, reducing productivity, which

is a precondition for growth and decent employment. Francis (2006) believes that
globalisation offers opportunities for diffusion of knowledge but this is at a disadvantage for
developing countries that are experiencing major loses in brain drain to developed countries.
The author believes that the ability to create new technologies is a critical requirement for
competing successfully in the global marketplace. Africas technological gap is thus viewed
as possible cause of economic deterioration as other developing countries are constantly
upgrading their technological capabilities and become more competitive. Francis (2005) is
supported by Scherwin, in his journal when he says that business entrepreneurs and
government officials have called upon the African Union (AU) to address the five main
factors affecting technology development: physical infrastructure, skills, financing,
technology, and supply clusters. The cases of Ghana, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have
shown that effective technology strategies are based on a clear understanding of the basic unit
of technological activity, the industrial firm, which imports, masters, uses and improves
technology. The journal confirms that the continent of African has observed East Asias
newly industrialized economies, which indicate to them that coherent and carefully crafted
technology policies can accelerate competitiveness and promote entry into more complex and
higher-level technology activities. Other countries will need to follow the steps of Ghana,
Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, where effectiveness promoted capabilities and as a result of
this, changes in traditional mindsets occurred to form interactions and linkages with other
firms or institutions, and to build technical know-how, as well as to overcome the problem of
leakage of trained workers.
The other factor may be poor economic structures in the continent. According to Taylor
(2005), due to the continents reluctance of adopting technology, most African nations have
not changed their economic structures since gaining independence from colonial deprivation.
This is a different case in Zimbabwe where many economic reforms are continuously being
implemented to actually meet competition in the global market. An example is the Zimbabwe
Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation (Zim-Asset) which will guide the
economy from October 2013 to December 2018 though with international relationship links
with Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, (BRICS). The main concern is that Africa
is rich with raw materials like gold, diamond, cocoa, timber and bauxite that is being
exported to Europe and Eastern countries instead of adding value to the these raw materials
before exportation so as to earn more money on the global market. Taylor notes that if
African nations import matches, computers, toys, toothpicks and other industrial products

from abroad, what it means is that Africans do not have the ability to manufacture these
things.
One noted factor that undermines the efforts of the African Union in promoting political and
economic stability in Africa is over dependence on foreign aid. Schraeder, (2004) highlights
that although foreign aid is beneficial, over reliance on this aid usually causes a nations
economy to stagnate. The author is of the opinion that in Africa, foreign donations make up a
large percentage of a countrys budget and this should not be the case. In his writings, the
author notes that it is no longer good for countries to wait for aid so as to improve the
infrastructure or enhance education. The African Union should look towards creating revenue
to fund its obligated duties for example funding to create an army of its own in times of
intervention in civil strife. Reliance on foreign aid has also been mentioned by Ayele Dersso
(2013) who points that the most notable and widely recognised limitation of the AU system is
its heavy dependence on donor funding for its activities. The author states that close to 90%
of the funding for AU peace and security activities comes from donor funding.
The same author finds that most AU member states do not make the diplomatic and military
contributions needed for the effective implementation of the decisions they make. For
example, the AU Mission to Somalia consisted of troops from only Uganda and Burundi,
although all Peace and Security Council members were involved in the decision to deploy
African Mission to Somalia. Major contributions in terms of both troops and other resources
for peace operations are borne by fewer than a dozen countries on the continent. For example,
the civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2000 was intervened by Zimbabwe
alone, however, it was the OAU that was still operating though the trend is still the same in
this era of AU.

The African economies according to the World Bank, (2006) have recorded a low average
growth rate of 4.5 percent per annum and a crushing debt burden which ballooned from 80
billion in 1982 to 275 billion in 2004. The debt burden has had a significant negative impact
on the African development. The World Bank reports that the debt payments are often
rescheduled, and by taking new loans from the IMF and Western industrial nations, African
countries multiply debts instead of clearing them. This leaves the African Union with no
reserves to fund its many tasks in trying to integrate and accelerate the political and socio
economic integration of the continent. The irony of the African economic situation today is
that a majority of the population now lives on less than one dollar per day in spite the fact
that many African countries devalued their currencies, engaged in the liberalization and

deregulation of trade, and privatized many of the public utilities as recommended by

international lending institutions. This is because a large part of the African investment
surplus leaves the continent as debt repayment, expatriation of profit, capital flight, etc. The
perhaps unintended and inevitable consequence has been widespread social dislocation,
social insecurity, widespread criminality and renewed upsurge in ethnic skirmishes and
religious violence in many parts of the continent.
Civil war is a major deterrent to development. This is seen in some countries in Africa like
Somalia, Sudan, Congo and Sierra Leone. The African Union is affected by these wars
because investors cannot dare to invest in such countries and thus it inhibits the creation of
employment opportunities. In addition, infrastructure also suffers since the country will be
more inclined to spend its limited resources on fighting equipment rather than enhancing
infrastructure.

Since the beginning of the 1990s, African economies have recorded a low
average growth rate of 4.5 percent per annum (World Bank, 2006) and a
crushing debt burden, which ballooned from $80 billion in 1982 to $ 275
billion in 2004 (World Bank, 2005). The debt burden has had a significant
negative impact on the African development. According to the World
Bank, the amount annually repaid by African governments more than
doubles their spending on health and primary education combined. The
debt payments are often rescheduled, and by taking new loans from the
IMF and Western industrial nations, African countries multiply their
debts instead of clearing them. Western financial institutions are now
playing the dual roles of consultant and executor of African economic
development programs. Unable to pay their debts, most African states
are compelled to seek various forms of debt relief and to implement
structural adjustment programs (SAPs). But through various forms of
conditionality, the IMF and World Bank dictate the economic and social
policies of these African states. The widespread adoption of SAPs and
their implementation have brought into sharp focus the contradictions in
the African political economies, and have exacerbated social inequalities,
with a concentration of wealth in the hands of a few while the majority
lives in poverty. However, after years of wrangling, agreement was
reached by the G8 at Gleneagles, Scotland, on writing off most of debts

Discuss the factors that undermine the efforts of the African Union (AU) in promoting
political and economic stability in Africa. (DD 30/05/2014, 1st visit of CDS).

Schraeder Peter J. (2004), African Politics and Society: A Mosaic in

Transformation 2ndEdition, Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomas
Learning Press.
Mutasa, C. (2003, March). Regional Integration and Debt in Africa: A Comparative Report on Africas Regional
Groupings. Retrieved June 29, 2007, from SARPN Web site:
http://www.sarpn.org.za/documents/d0000299/P295_Mutasa.pdf

Gondwe, G. (2001, December). Making Globalization Work in Africa. Finance and Development. Retrieved
June 30, 2007, from http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2001/12/gondwe.htm
In this document the author suggest some way for Africa to promote growth and reduce poverty by
establishing methods of economic and fiscal responsibility winch would allow the continent as a whole to
embrace the global economy. This thus leads to improvements in regional political corporation among
countries within Africa: but an overall strengthening of social institutions throughout the continent.
The success of regional integration also hinges critically on Member States pursuing convergent
macroeconomic policies.92 Misalignments of tariffs, inflation, exchange rates, rate of money growth and other
vital macroeconomic variables between Member States would be disruptive to the regional integration
process. In addition, these misalignments could lead to rent-seeking activities by government and private
individuals that could stifle legitimate investment opportunities. 93 This could contribute to the demise of the
economy of a member country, weakening the whole integration process. It is therefore imperative that the
process of strengthening regional integration includes guidelines for the convergence of macroeconomic and
trade polices of the entire regional space so as to strengthen the overall regional integration agenda. 94
Strengthening and deepening of Africas financial markets and institutions are also essential for mobilizing the
financial resources needed to finance integration projects such as infrastructure. These institutions also
enhance the payment system and contribute to facilitating trade within and outside the regional communities.
In addition to improving the financial markets, efforts may be needed to encourage the RECs to establish
development banks in their regions to assist Member States in financing infrastructure projects. However, the
integration of financial markets in Africa requires the harmonization of national policies and procedures
governing these markets and institutions across Member States.9

The AU was formed in hopes of further improving the

objectives to secure Africas democracy, human rights,

sustainable economy, and bringing to an end the intraAfrican conflict that has plagued the continent.21

The State of Tranquility believes that the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity and economic security
lend themselves to the pacific settlement of disputes in Sub-Saharan Africa, the most ethnically diverse region
in the world. The lack of development in the region constitutes the root cause of political instability and
conflict. The report of the Secretary-General, An Agenda for Peace: Recommendations, if implemented, could
enhance the work of the Organization in its efforts to bring about sustainable development in Africa.
Tranquility also believes that the use of preventive development in Africa could ensure that conflicts such as
those in Liberia, Rwanda, Angola, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo can be avoided before
they erupt. While obstacles to be overcome are many, international support for effective national programs to
ensure the relief to rehabilitation to development continuum through post-conflict peace-building, can enable
Sub-Saharan Africa and the entire developing world to achieve the sustainable development which alone will
guarantee regional peace and stability. The State of Tranquility fully supports the increased cooperation
between the United Nations and regional organizations in all aspects of dispute settlement and peace-keeping.
Increased support for such regional efforts, when combined with measures to eliminate the root causes of
regional conflict, serves to further enhance the prospects for lasting peace, security and development in SubSaharan Africa and throughout the entire international community.

The AU has taken over the political work left by the OAU. The task facing the AU is one of
promoting democracy and good governance in Africa. Mutuwira, Nyawera and Rusere
(2007) revealed that promoting democracy is a problem in a number of African countries.
The authors revealed that democracy is still threatened in a number of countries that include
Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia and Sudan among other African states. Democracy and good
governance have become a condition for African countries to qualify for economic aid from
international institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.
The former South African President, Thabo Mbeki started a new policy of improving
relations between Africa and the outside world as well as among African countries. This is
called New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD). It is a re-birth of Africa to take a
new place in the global village but this is based on democracy and good governance.
International terrorism is negatively affecting Africa. Many people have lost their lives in

Somalia and Sudan. The conditions set for NEPAD sort of make it very difficult for the AU
to get financial resources to establish a standing army to maintain peace and security.
http://www.dpmf.org points that the immediate factors or challenges facing AU include
appropriate human resources to establish a solid and efficient Commission which would have
the professional and intellectual capacity to prepare, manage and implement relevant
programmes,

REFERENCES
MacMillan English Dictionary (2008).

Dictionary for Advanced Learners. London:

Longman.

African Union, Strategy to Revitalize Technical and Vocational Education and Training in
Africa, 2007, p. 1.
Francis David J. (2006), Uniting Africa: Building Regional Peace and Security
Systems, Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing Company.
Scherwin, P. Learning Innovation Policy Based on Historical Experience, (2003) page 24
Mohammed, A. (2002) First African Union Summit: Report and Reflections Unpublished
Report. Addis Ababa.

African Union, Strategy to Revitalize Technical and Vocational Education and Training in
Africa, 2007, p. 1.
Francis David J. (2006), Uniting Africa: Building Regional Peace and Security
Systems, Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing Company.
Taylor Ian (2005), NEPAD: Toward Africas Development or Another False
Start?, Boulder: Lynne Rienner Publishers.
Schraeder Peter J. (2004), African Politics and Society: A Mosaic in
Transformation 2ndEdition, Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomas
Learning Press.
Mutasa, C. (2003, March). Regional Integration and Debt in Africa: A Comparative Report
on Africas Regional Groupings. Retrieved June 29, 2007, from SARPN Web site:
http://www.sarpn.org.za/documents/d0000299/P295_Mutasa.pdf
Gondwe, G. (2001, December). Making Globalization Work in Africa. Finance and Development. Retrieved
June 30, 2007, from http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2001/12/gondwe.htm
In this document the author suggest some way for Africa to promote growth and reduce poverty by
establishing methods of economic and fiscal responsibility winch would allow the continent as a whole to
embrace the global economy. This thus leads to improvements in regional political corporation among
countries within Africa: but an overall strengthening of social institutions throughout the continent.