Elected for the first time in 2017, the former Chadian minister of foreign affairs, who is running for re-election without opposition, will seek reappointment for the 2021-2024 term, and should gather the support of two-thirds of African heads of state.
"In two months, I will complete my first four-year term at the helm of the African Union Commission. I am proud to have led the Commission with a team that did its best to succeed in our joint mission," Mahamat said in a report on the balance sheet of the previous mandate and priorities for the next one released over the weekend.
The Chadian politician acknowledged that during his first term in office there were positive but also less positive developments and aspects, noting that these four years are coming to an end in a context of complexity intensified by the covid-19 pandemic.
"Regarding the context of my election in 2017, the world has become increasingly complex and forecasts have become more uncertain," he admitted.
He said his project for the next term will continue to focus on the development objectives of the AU's Agenda 2063 and seven priority areas, including finalising institutional reform of the organisation and strengthening the leadership of its bodies, strengthening administrative and financial accountability and the fight to silence arms in Africa.
"The next mandate may be compromised if we do not significantly silence arms in countries affected by crises and armed conflict in Africa," said Moussa Faki Mahamat.
"Eradicating terrorism in the Sahel, Lake Chad region, Mozambique, Tanzania and Somalia, building peace in the Central African Republic (CAR), South Sudan, Sudan and Libya and ensuring Africa's contribution to the solution of the conflict in Western Sahara will be priorities," he said.
The AU has been criticized for its inaction or late reaction to political and security crises on the continent.
In this context, the candidate stressed the need to improve early warning, prevention and mediation of conflicts on the continent, reaffirming the principle of "African solutions to African problems" as well as the need to "articulate more clearly the discourse on financing African peacekeeping operations".
Moussa Faki Mahamat also said she will strive for successful implementation of key integration projects such as the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), which came into force earlier this year.
On the list of priorities are also greater efforts to improve food, reduce poverty and protect the environment, as well as the implementation of policies in favor of youth and women.
Faki Mahamat also proposes to renew the continent's strategic partnerships, notably with China and the European Union, under the principles that Africa belongs to Africans, African problems are solved by and between Africans and the continent speaks with one voice.
"I intend to revisit our strategic partnerships in order to align them with these simple but crucial principles," he said.
"Africa and Asia, Africa and Europe, Africa and America, how can we not be proud that our continent is today at the center of these immense geostrategic spaces? Ultimately, however, we will only fully enjoy this status if we assert ourselves, without complexes or hesitation, in our own identity, on a basis of total equality with others," he added.
The Chadian politician is expected to present his assessment of his first term in office and his proposal for re-election to the heads of state at the AU summit, scheduled for February 6-7, presumably in digital format.
The African Union comprises 55 countries, including Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique and Sao Tome and Principe, and is headed by a commission and its presidency is rotated by the countries for a period of one year.
The organization meets annually in an ordinary assembly in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where it has its headquarters.
The summit, which should focus discussions on the crisis caused by the covid-19 pandemic in the continent, will mark the passage of the current presidency from South Africa to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRCongo).
The new African Union Commission, the first to be elected after the reform process begun in 2016 under Rwandan President Paul Kagamé's supervision, will have fewer commissioners and will be chosen through a new merit-based system.
The new executive structure of the African Union will be composed of eight members, including a president, a vice president and six commissioners, two fewer seats than the previous commission.
Among the commissioner candidates is Angolan agricultural engineer Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko.
The diplomat and current AU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Economy, the only Lusophone representative on the list of 25 pre-qualified candidates, will seek re-election to the same portfolio, which will also become part of the Blue Economy and Environment.
