By Tendai Keith Guvamombe
The third Civil Society Parliamentary Dialogue, held on the sidelines of the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) Sixth Session, became a platform for a dramatic call to action, with PAP President Chief Fortune Charumbira demanding civil society organizations (CSOs) hold their governments accountable for delaying African integration and the goals of AU Agenda 2063.
PAP President Chief Fortune Charumbira pinpointed the single biggest hurdle facing the African Union (AU): ratification.
He explained the AU policy process is broken because while Heads of State agree and sign protocols in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, they return home and fail to secure the required signatures (often 28 or more) for national implementation.
Charumbira delivered a scathing indictment of this failure, citing the example of the African Court of Justice: “For example, we have the African Court of Justice which has been ratified by six countries only,” he noted.
This domestic failure is contrasted with the tendency of African parties to bypass their own systems to seek justice at international courts. He urged CSOs to aggressively quiz their governments on why key protocols—such as those enabling the free movement of people—remain dormant.
Former AU Executive Commissioner Ambassador Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma reinforced the severity of the crisis, declaring that without accountability, “we are going nowhere.”
She emphasized that the AU Agenda 2063—the continent’s master plan for sustainable development—requires a skills revolution driven by educated youth.
Charumbira echoed this, warning that African universities are producing graduates “without skills,” forcing the continent to import innovation.
CSOs are now tasked with pushing for educational reform and ensuring the implementation of the Agenda 2063 goal of “Well Educated Citizens and Skills revolution underpinned by Science, Technology and Innovation.”
Dlamini Zuma stressed that “Africa doesn’t need policies, it needs implementation,” urging CSOs to be the driving force: “It is time as the Civil Society pressure your governments to ratify AU Protocols.”
The ultimate goal is to hold governments accountable for enforcing the agreements they signed, ensuring that “no country is better than the other, we are one as Africa.”
The message is clear: CSOs must be the voice that “none can silence,” bridging the gap between high-level agreements and tangible action on the ground to realize the Africa We Want.
The dialogue cemented the role of civil society as the essential missing link in the AU’s legal and political chain, tasked with bridging the massive gap between high-level agreements and tangible action on the ground.
