African Union ECOSOCC

04/09/2026

In or 🇺🇸 for UNGA81 week?

Make time for three important conversations on Africa–Diaspora engagement, reparative justice and capital from 18 to 21 September 2026.

ECOSOCC and partners are convening engagements that bring together , diaspora organizations, African Union representatives, faith institutions, universities, scholars, community actors and development finance stakeholders.

📍 WASHINGTON, D.C. | 18 SEPTEMBER
Journey to 20 Seats: Diaspora Participation & Reparative Justice
🕑 2:00 PM–6:00 PM EDT
African Union Representational Mission to the United States

A focused discussion on the 20 diaspora seats within ECOSOCC, representation, accountability, inclusion and coordination between diaspora organizations and African Union institutions, alongside the AU’s wider reparative agenda and the emerging Reparations Caravan.

📍 NEW YORK | 19 SEPTEMBER
Reparative Justice, Institutional Responsibility & Diaspora Participation
🕑 2:00 PM–5:30 PM EDT
St. James Church Fordham, Bronx

The discussion will examine what meaningful repair requires in practice, including memory, recognition, , , institutional accountability and reform, in connection with the United Nations’ Second International Decade for People of African Descent (2025–2034).

📍 NEW YORK | 21 SEPTEMBER
FIRE CHAT: Diaspora Capital & Development Finance
🕤 9:30 AM–1:30 PM ET
Jay Suites, 515 Madison Avenue, 10th Floor

This conversation will explore diaspora engagement in , , , knowledge and , including the proposed African-Diaspora Investment Corridor.

🔗 REGISTER HERE: https://forms.gle/C9wqSJ5c2d5ogbPt9

ℹ️ https://ecosocc.au.int/en/registration/unga180906

Admission by registration only. Participation is self-sponsored.

Partners: TrustAfrica, Reform Initiatives, the INCLUDE knowledge platform, the Teaching Artist Institute (TAI), WIDU.africa, the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ), St. James Church Fordham and the African Union Representational Mission to the United States.

Planning to be in Washington, D.C. or New York during UNGA81 week? Three days. Two cities. One agenda: advancing Africa–Diaspora engagement during UNGA81 week. The African Union Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC), together with TrustAfrica, Reform Initiatives, the INCLUDE Knowledge Pl...

04/09/2026

Did you know African organizations can formally engage with the African Union?!

Civil society engagement with the AU can take different forms, including participating in consultations, contributing expertise and recommendations, and engaging with AU organs and institutions on issues affecting people and communities across the continent.

For organizations working on everything from and to , and , economic development and , these pathways provide opportunities to bring knowledge and experience into continental discussions.

But how does formal engagement with the AU work?

We’ll be exploring that in the weeks ahead!

04/09/2026

What can African civil society do with the UN General Assembly resolution on chattel slavery?

🔗 https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_KuLkNb13RoWCKyjRDYqZoQ #/registration

Join us and the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation on September 10 for a Civil Society Roundtable examining how the resolution can support advocacy for and historical justice.

The discussion will look at opportunities for to engage African Union, national and international processes, strengthen African and networks, support and public , and involve in work on reparations.

The Roundtable will also look at Africa–CARICOM: Caribbean Community collaboration and practical steps for civil society engagement following the adoption of the resolution.

🗓️ September 10, 2026
⏰ 12:00 UTC | 14:00 CAT | 15:00 EAT
💻 Online via Zoom

Register to participate: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_KuLkNb13RoWCKyjRDYqZoQ #/registration

03/09/2026

What does it take to ensure that water and sanitation services continue to reach people when crisis hits?

That was one of the questions that guided Session 1 of the African Union ECOSOCC E-Symposium on the African Union Theme of the Year 2026, bringing together , experts, humanitarian practitioners and engineers to examine the challenges communities face across .

The session was hosted and moderated by Ar. Ing. Vinesh Chintaram, Chairperson of the Infrastructure & Energy Sectoral Cluster Committee, ECOSOCC, who framed the discussion around the need to first understand the realities and challenges affecting water and sanitation before developing appropriate solutions. He emphasized the importance of evidence-based recommendations grounded in the experiences of communities and territories across Africa.

Mr. Louis Cheick Sissoko, Presiding Officer of ECOSOCC, opened the session by emphasizing that civil society should contribute to identifying problems and developing solutions, rather than being consulted only after policies have been developed. He called for communities to be at the center of responses and highlighted the links between , , , , , economic , and stability.

Mrs. Voahary Rakotovelomanantsoa, WASH Expert and Former Minister of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, 🇲🇬, called for Africa to move from managing water scarcity to managing water security. She highlighted the need for political leadership, adequate , climate-resilient solutions, effective partnerships with the private sector and greater participation of in water leadership.

Mr. Tre Bi Tizie Leon Rodrigue, Head of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Unit, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, examined why water and services often fail during crises. He highlighted financing gaps, weak institutional capacity, maintenance challenges, staffing shortages, lack of spare parts and poor coordination. He stressed the need to plan and anticipate shocks, particularly where conflict and displacement place additional pressure on existing systems.

Ar. Mahamat Alhadi Ibrahim, Senior Officer, UNHCR, focused on displacement and territorial inequality. He explained how communities receiving displaced populations can face sudden increases in demand without corresponding increases in water . He called for a shift toward area-based systems serving both displaced and host communities, with water, sanitation, drainage, shelter and roads considered together during settlement planning.

Dr. Eileen Manka Tabuwe Akwo, Regional Coordinator, SNWOT - South West/North West Women's Task Force, highlighted how inadequate water and sanitation services affect women and girls through increased distances to water sources, safety risks, missed school time, menstrual hygiene challenges and unpaid care work. She also highlighted the exclusion of women from some community water governance structures, despite women carrying much of the responsibility for collecting and using water.

Eng. Gemechis Bizuayehu, Executive Director, Engineers Without Borders - 🇪🇹, called for a shift from measuring access to measuring continuity of service. He explained that infrastructure can exist without providing a reliable service when energy, staffing, maintenance, spare parts, financing or institutional authority are missing. He called for humanitarian investments to contribute to durable public services and for infrastructure to be designed to withstand and recover from shocks.

Following the presentations, Dr. Eyole Nganje Monono, Co-Moderator and Chairperson of the Political Affairs Cluster Committee, ECOSOCC, recapped the issues raised by the speakers and opened the floor for questions and contributions from participants.

The discussion covered , , conflict and displacement, resilient infrastructure, financing, maintenance, health, women’s participation and community .

It also raised an important practical question for policymakers and practitioners: When drought, conflict, displacement or another crisis puts pressure on a system, will the water and sanitation services still function?

The insights from Session 1 will contribute to the ongoing ECOSOCC consultations on the AU’s 2026 Theme of the Year.

Join us for Session 2: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_xl-zVClPSLmNDTf_DzkBog #/registration

🗓️ October 15, 2026
🕐 13:00 UTC | 15:00 CAT | 16:00 EAT

03/09/2026

⏰ ONE HOUR TO GO. Have you registered?

🔗 https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Ec75WjN6SvSmnwz92gte4g

Session 1 of the ECOSOCC E-Symposium on the African Union’s 2026 Theme of the Year begins in an hour!

The ECOSOCC E-Symposium on the is an opportunity for organizations, experts, practitioners and other stakeholders to share what they are seeing on the ground, exchange ideas, and contribute perspectives that can help inform African Union policy and priorities on and .

🗓️ Thursday, 3 September 2026
🕐 13:00 UTC | 15:00 CAT | 16:00 EAT
💻 Online via Zoom

Register now and join us in one hour: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Ec75WjN6SvSmnwz92gte4g

03/09/2026

Have you applied yet?!

If you’re 18–30 and based in 🇬🇭 or 🇿🇲, the Democracy Innovations Café is looking for young people with ideas for strengthening democracy and political participation!

Your idea could focus on , community organizing, accountability, , , , digital projects, or a or community-based approach. It can be something you are still developing or a project you've already started. It doesn't need to be a project.

The six-month programme will give selected participants a physical space to work, shared resources, peer learning, mentorship and opportunities to develop, test and improve their ideas with others working on and .

You don't need to submit a traditional written application. You can apply through a short video, audio recording, illustration, creative work or another format that communicates your idea clearly.

Here are the submission guidelines:https://reforminitiatives.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Call-For-Applications-Democracy-Innovations-Cafe_27-08-26.pdf

Applications are open until 10 September 2026 at 11:59 PM GMT.

📍 Accra, : [email protected]
📍 Lusaka, : [email protected]

We look forward to hearing your ideas and working with you to bring them to life!

02/09/2026

The UN has taken another major step on reparatory justice!

Earlier this year, the United Nations General Assembly recognized the trafficking of enslaved Africans and racialized chattel enslavement of Africans as “the gravest crime against humanity.”

Now, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has set out detailed guidance on and the continuing consequences of slavery and colonialism.

The Committee says these histories are connected to and structural inequalities that continue today.

Its recommendations call for comprehensive reparatory measures, including , compensation, , satisfaction and guarantees of non-repetition. They also call for meaningful participation by and affected communities, action by institutions that benefited from these systems, accurate and memorialization, and time-bound national action plans.

Read through our carousel for the key recommendations.

ℹ️: https://www.ohchr.org/en/documents/general-comments-and-recommendations/general-recommendation-no40-reparatory-justice-harms

If you're planning to be in or 🇺🇸 during week, join African Union ECOSOCC and partners for three engagements exploring Africa–Diaspora participation, reparative justice and diaspora capital from 18 to 21 September 2026: https://forms.gle/C9wqSJ5c2d5ogbPt9

02/09/2026

📄 The Outcome Document from the 2026 Global Africa People to People Forum is now available!

Held on 21 July under the theme “Advancing into the Second United Nations International Decade for People of African Descent,” the Forum brought together , , , and development experts from Africa, the Caribbean and the Global African Diaspora to discuss reparatory justice, solidarity, , and , and Africa-CARICOM: Caribbean Community cooperation.

The Forum’s Call to Action sets out concrete priorities, including advancing the implementation of UN General Assembly Resolution A/RES/80/250, strengthening Africa-CARICOM solidarity, supporting Haiti, advancing cooperation on water, sanitation and hygiene, and tracking commitments from the Second Africa-CARICOM Heads of Government Summit.

Read the full Outcome Document and explore the calls to action: https://ecosocc.au.int/en/events/2026-07-21/2026-global-africa-people-people-forum

The 2026 Global Africa People-to-People Forum, held virtually on 21 July, advanced the Second UN International Decade for People of African Descent.

02/09/2026

Today we feature the words of H.E. President John Magufuli:

“We must build our country with our own hands. No one else will do it for us.”

He believed Africa has enough resources; from natural wealth and manpower to ingenuity to develop without heavy dependence on external donors. His vision was clear: true progress must be driven by Africans themselves.

His words remind us that continental development efforts should embrace self-reliance, discipline, and the will to harness Africa’s abundant resources.

Let us take inspiration from his call to move beyond dependency, to innovate boldly, and to build a future shaped by our own hands.

02/09/2026

Join us for Session 1️⃣ of the E-Symposium on the 2026 AU Theme of the Year tomorrow!

🔗 https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Ec75WjN6SvSmnwz92gte4g #/registration

We’ll hear from experts and practitioners working on , , and issues across .

We'll also hear from you! We encourage you to share your experience, raise the issues you see on the ground and contribute practical recommendations for African Union institutions, Member States and fellow organizations.

📅 3 September 2026
🕐 13:00 UTC | 15:00 CAT | 16:00 EAT
💻 Virtual

Swipe through to meet the speakers and moderators who will lead tomorrow’s discussion.

Register to join us: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Ec75WjN6SvSmnwz92gte4g #/registration