Senegal’s Sall set to take over as AU Chairperson

 

Senegalese President Macky Sall is set to take over from his Democratic Republic of Congo counterpart Felix Tshisekedi as the Chairperson of the African Union.

Sall will take the role during the upcoming 35th African Union Summit scheduled to be held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, between February 5-6.

The Senegalese president was endorsed for the position by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which was expected to produce the next AU Chairperson.

He will serve in the capacity for the 2022-2023 period.

Sall’s tenure will mark the fourth time a Senegalese leader will be running the AU after Léopold Sédar Senghor (1980) and Abdou Diouf (1985 and 1992).

He is set to take over amidst the continent’s continued fight against COVID-19, economic recovery as well as a myriad of political upheavals, especially in West Africa.

The position of the AU chairperson is a rotating seat among member states that lasts one year.