Kenya’s President and African Union Champion of Institutional Reforms, William Ruto, has revealed that Africa spends approximately $18 billion each year to tackle security issues and ongoing conflicts.
Speaking at the AU Retreat on Institutional Reforms, he highlighted that from April to June 2024 alone, there were 1,000 terrorism-related incidents, resulting in 4,818 deaths.
According to President Ruto, these figures reflect a growing humanitarian crisis, with conflicts, terrorism, and political instability wreaking havoc on lives and communities.
He emphasized the need for immediate action to address the root causes of insecurity across the continent.
“The continent is facing unprecedented challenges regarding peace and security. Conflict continues to rob Africa of its potential costing continents an estimated $18 billion annually and displacing millions of people.
“Africa today, is home to 35 million internally displaced persons, 8.9 million refugees, 1.1 million asylum seekers and a million stateless people.
“Between April and June 2024 alone, a total of 1,000 terrorism-related incidents were recorded across Africa resulting in 4,818 deaths. This is an existential moment for our continent. The African Union in its current architecture and configuration is incapable of addressing these complex dynamics and challenges and there is an urgent need for immediate revitalisation of the peace and security architecture,” he stated.
Meanwhile, President John Dramani Mahama also expressed concerns over the African Union’s reliance on external funding, indicating that it impedes the organisation’s ability to set its own agenda.
