African Union Member States Validation Meeting on the Teachers’ Guides and Learners’ Manuals needed for the AU Strategy for the inclusion and Mainstreaming of the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (ACDEG) in School Curricula was held in Maputo, Mozambique from 4 to 6 December 2023. The meeting was organized by the Constitutionalism and Rule of Law Unit under the Department of Political Affairs, Peace and Security, African Union Commission (AUC). The meeting brought together Member States’ representatives, experts, representatives from Regional Economic Communities (RECs), Regional Mechanisms (RMs), and AU organs from 46 AU Member States.

The AU strategy for the inclusion and the mainstreaming of the ACDEG in school curricula of AU Member States and its implementation materials, including the strategic roadmap and the training material tool, were all considered by the representatives of RECs and RMs in Abidjan from August 12-14, 2022, followed by a consultative meeting on the 29^th of November 2022 in Kinshasa to discuss the documents that needed to be developed for the launching of the pilot phase of the project. Accordingly, a committee of experts through the last year, developed the teachers’ guide and learners’ manual needed for the inclusion and mainstreaming of the ACDEG in School Curricula. It is against this backdrop that the AU organized this meeting in Maputo to validate these documents.

In her opening remarks, Ms. Patience Chiradza, the Director of the Governance and Conflict Prevention Directorate of the African Union Commission, said “Today we are gathered here to unleash the transformative power of education to shape the future of democracy across our continent. Agenda2063 envisions a continent that is politically united based on the ideals of Pan-Africanism and good governance. It emphasizes the importance of democracy, inclusivity and sustainable development as key drivers of Africa's transformation.”

H.E. Mr. Artur Armando Dombo, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education and Human Development of the Republic of Mozambique, also stated “Our presence in this space is unequivocal proof of our common strategic orientation and the interest that we all have in improving Education, as an instrument for the continuous improvement and development of our countries”.

The Founder of the European Centre for Electoral Support, Mr Fabio Bargiacchi, expressed: “In the framework of the Pro Electoral Integrity project, we work together with the AU, thanks to the support of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to development of a common culture of resilience and shared values around the integrity of electoral processes, among other things. Civic and Voter Education together with capacity development on leadership and conflict management for electoral stakeholders are among the most important activities and we truly believe that start to work on disseminating the ACDEG already from school is actually paramount,” said Mr Fabio Bargiacchi.

During the three days, participants were divided into 4 groups and exhaustively discussed and enhanced the guides and manuals before they validated them. The meeting also set the stage for the effective implementation of the pilot phase of the project in selected countries due to take place in 2024.

At the closing ceremony, experts who worked on the development of the teachers’ guide and learners’ manual received certificates from the hands of H.E. Sr Artur Armando Dombo and Ms. Patience Chiradza, in recognition of their expertise and dedication within the framework of the AU programme on the development of curriculums to teach the ACDEG in school programs of Member states.

The activity was organized with the support of the European Centre for Electoral Support (ECES) through the Pro Electoral Integrity project being funded by the government of Italy.

For more information:

Mrs. Abibata Tientega Barry, Constitutionalism and Rule of Law Unit, Governance and Conflict Prevention Directorate, Political Affairs, Peace and Security Department, African Union Commission. Email: barrya@africa-union.org

For media inquiries:

Ms. Limi Mohammed, Web Administrator, in the Political Affairs, Peace and Security Department, African Union Commission. Email: shashlm@africa-union.org

Information and Communication Directorate, African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@africa-union.org
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