AU pays tribute to outgoing secretary-general

The African Union (AU) paid tribute on Wednesday to its outgoing secretary-general, Amara Essy, who is due to step down next week from the post he has held for the past two years. Essy, 59, steered the AU, whose headquarters are in Addis Ababa, through the crucial transition from the former Organisation of African Unity to a new body aimed, among other things, at achieving greater unity among African countries, accelerating political and socio-economic integration and promoting peace, security and stability in Africa. "He has done his best for Africa in what have been very difficult and trying times," AU spokesman Desmond Orjiako told IRIN. "He has overseen the transition period, which was a very difficult time given the economic problems still faced and the many conflicts that made that process even harder. This was a remarkable achievement." As he prepared to leave office, Essy urged African nations to sign up to the African Peace and Security Council, a proposed mechanism within the AU for conflict prevention, management and resolution. "It would be impossible to bring about development and deal with poverty in Africa without ensuring peace and security in the continent," Essy told journalists. [The Council needs to be ratified by 26 of the AU’s 53 members.] Essy, who served as Ivory Coast's foreign minister for 10 years until 2000, played a key role in encouraging negotiations between the government and rebels in Sierra Leone, which led to a UN-brokered peace agreement in 1999. Orjiako said Essy would formally hand over next Tuesday to his successor, Alpha Omar Konare, the former president of Mali. AU heads of state and government elected Konare as their new chairman during July’s AU summit in Maputo. [For more on the African Union go to www.africa-union.org]