Djibouti’s foreign minister, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, will be vying for the African Union Commission chair in February. Photo: sourced
Djibouti’s foreign minister, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, has criticised African leaders for failing to take decisive action to resolve the continent’s conflicts, particularly those in Sudan and the Sahel.
Speaking to the Mail & Guardian on the sidelines of the Mjadala Afrika Leadership Debate in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in December, Youssouf said the African Union Commission (AUC) had fallen short in its peacekeeping efforts because of a lack of intervention from heads of state.
Youssouf is vying for the chair of the AUC, with the election set for February.
“Why are the African heads of state not travelling to [those areas] to stop the war between the stakeholders? There are a number of questions that will have to be handled for sure and I will make it one of my priorities [if elected] because people are suffering.”
The conflict in Sudan alone has claimed at least 62 000 lives since April 2023, with the AUC criticised for its limited role in resolving the crisis.
Youssouf is competing against former Kenyan prime minister Raila Odinga and Madagascar’s former minister of foreign affairs, Richard Randriamandrato, to succeed incumbent Moussa Faki Mahamat.
Mahamat has served as the commission chairperson since 2017. He was at the forefront of the AU’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic when the continent struggled to secure vaccines. Although he also emphasised the need for peacekeeping, Africa faced numerous clashes between rival Sudanese forces, ethnic cleansing in Ethiopia’s Tigray region and military coups in Guinea and Mali during his tenure.
Youssouf said the AUC’s handling of the conflict in Sudan and the Sahel region “has not been successful” because state leaders have failed to intervene. While the AU’s Peace and Security Council has condemned the war, the commission has been criticised for its inability to resolve the conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces.
The most significant effort by the AU to date has been the Jeddah negotiation — driven largely by international counterparts — but it too failed to prevent the conflict from escalating.
Youssouf, who has been foreign affairs minister since 2015, has established Djibouti as a strategic hub by hosting military bases for several countries, including the US, France and China. Reports suggest the country has between eight and 11 foreign military bases, but the government has refrained from confirming the tally.
Youssouf said that should he win the AU election, he would “no longer be the foreign minister and will be at the service of the continent”.
Djibouti’s past border disputes with Eritrea and delicate relations in the Horn of Africa might affect how some member states perceive Youssouf’s candidacy.
In 2008, strain between Djibouti and Eritrea escalated into an armed conflict over the vague colonial demarcations of Ras Doumeira and Doumeira Island. At the time, Djibouti accused Eritrea of moving troops into the disputed territory, violating Djibouti’s sovereignty. The conflict resulted in casualties on both sides and a military standoff.
But, in reconciliation efforts since 2018, Djibouti and Eritrea re-established diplomatic ties after years of estrangement.
Odinga remained a prominent figure in African politics through his role as the AU high representative for infrastructure development in Africa after his term as Kenya’s prime minister ended in 2013.
While Youssouf and Odinga bring strong diplomatic experience, Madagascar’s Randriamandrato, a former economist, is focused on systemic solutions to Africa’s challenges.
The former foreign affairs minister’s commitment to strengthening Southern African Development Community (SADC) partnerships could garner him strong support from countries in the region.
After the political turmoil which ousted President Marc Ravalomanana in 2009, SADC suspended Madagascar but Randriamandrato, along with other officials, worked to restore its full membership status.
Youssouf believes his experience will put him ahead of the pack in February.
“I think that we need new blood for the commission, younger leaders for the commission. And I hope that I will be the one that the leaders will consider [in] February to lead the commission,” he said.
One of Youssouf’s visions for the AU is to “expand the African passport” to enable citizens to travel from one member state to another without a visa.
But he cautioned that the process would not be easy because there “are all kinds of considerations that prevent countries from implementing it”.
“One of them is security reasons. The other one is demographic balance. Third is migration. There are so many things that we have to handle and to tackle, and at the end of the day, it takes political will, political readiness to really implement that African passport,” Youssouf said.
He praised United Nations secretary general Antonio Guterres’ efforts to see at least two African countries as permanent members of the UN Security Council. Guterres has criticised the council’s outdated structure and lack of representation, which he has said he aims to change before the end of his second term in December 2026.
Youssouf said the involvement of African countries in the UN Security Council would go some way to “redress the historic injustice done to Africa”.
“It’s the rightful position, it’s the rightful stance from the African continent to seek a permanent seat with the right of veto.”
He added: “This is a reparation that we are asking for, and it’s a legitimate right, and this is our position, and this is the position I will advocate for when I am elected.”