The Commission of the African Union has noted the results of the election of the new Executive Committee of the Pan African Youth Union (PYU) during the Congress held in Khartoum Sudan from the 19th to the 21st of December, 2017. The Commission has also noted the reactions of the various youth organizations and young people who PYU purportedly sent as its representation to the elections.

The Commission wishes to inform the public that, upon an invitation of H.E the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Sudan, the Commissioner of Human Resources, Science and Technology attended only a function hosted by the government and not the events or elections of the PYU.

The Liaison Office of AU in Sudan attended the congress as an observer only. The observer has no vote or say neither in the deliberations of the congress nor in the process of elections. His role is only to observe what took place and report back to AUC. As an observer, the following came to the AUC attention:

• Representatives from only 29 of the 55 AU Member States were present at the Congress. It was, thus, difficult to establish if a quorum was met.
• 10 of the 29 Member States present boycotted the election due to allegations of manipulation of the election process.
• Various petitions were received from organizations regarding the eligibility of presented candidates as well as the disregard of due process during the election.

Consequently, the AUC confirms its full de-association from the PYU and that it does not recognize the current executive committee. In principle, AU stands for democratic governance and due process. The AUC does not recognize or support any faulty procedures or any decisions that undermine these principles.

In light of this, the Commission, therefore, wishes to inform the public that the current Executive Committee is not recognized by the African Union Commission. As we continue to demand democratic governance ideals across Africa, we are mindful of the need to enshrine this in our youth and will not support any process that undermines due processes.

Finally, the Commission wishes to inform youth bodies and individual young people that while respecting the place of the Pan African Youth Union (PYU) and National Youth Councils, the AU will continue to work with young people irrespective of affiliations across the continent and in the diaspora to ensure we achieve ‘The Africa We Want’.

19 January 2018