Washington, DC — The African Union's peer review mechanism is a serious process that may usher in a new era of good governance in Africa, said representatives from the U.S. State Department, UN Development Programme and African Union at a panel Wednesday.
"I've never felt more optimistic than now on Africa," said Abdoulie Janneh, UN assistant secretary general and director of UNDP's Africa Bureau. "It is a great opportunity, it is a challenge."
Launched in 2003 as part of the New Partnership for African Development (Nepad), a pan-African initiative to improve good governance and promote development, the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) is an instrument by which African nations ensure mutual oversight on political, economic and corporate governance.
"In a way, we're writing a new page on how to democratize our countries," said Marie-Angelique Savané, a Senegal native and chairperson of the seven-member board that oversees the peer review mechanism. She said the peer review process is distinct from previous accountability measures in that it is a process entirely inspired and managed by Africans themselves. The peer review panel is comprised of representatives from Algeria, Cameroon, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal and South Africa.
Undergoing a peer review is voluntary, but a country must abide by certain rules of procedure once it has decided to participate. These rules include establishing an inclusive national commission to assess the country's performance on democratic governance and creating a plan of action to deal with whatever shortcomings the commission identifies.
A review team is then sent to the country, and after a series of wide-ranging investigations, the team issues a governance report. The initial report is presented to the country's government to ensure transparency and accuracy, and a final report is submitted to the assembly of heads of state and governments of participating countries. Then, the participating governments, together with the country under review, must come up with practical ways and resources to put the country on the right track.
To date 23 countries have signed the memorandum of understanding establishing the peer review, including Egypt, Nigeria, and South Africa, though only two (Ghana and Rwanda) have completed the review process. Their reports will be made public when the Assembly of Heads of State convenes in August.
Currently the peer review mechanism is funded primarily by each participating country, however a trust fund has been established to help countries under budgetary constraints. Managed by UNDP, the fund has received pledges from several countries, including Algeria, Gabon, and Lesotho. Nigeria has given $1 million for the proper functioning of the peer review secretariat, according to the government press office. Savané said that as it stands, the trust fund can cover up to three years of operation.
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The fund should still be supported by international donors, Janneh said. "We encourage our partners in the international community to support this initiative."
His plea was echoed by Chris Fomunyoh, regional director for Africa at the National Democratic Institute, an institution based in Washington. "I hope APRM will not be the type of situation where you organize a party and no one shows up," he said.
For U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Constance Barry Newman, the peer review mechanism offers the potential for sustainable development. She said the US government was initially skeptical of the initiative, but after meeting those conducting the process, "we were sure it was serious," she said.
She hinted that if successful, the project would set a positive precedent for the global community to follow. "I think the rest of the world will learn from the APRM," she said. "There is no equivalent to the peer review process...truly, there is none. We want African Heads of State to know the world is watching."
The panel was sponsored by UNDP and held at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, D.C.
