The Pan-African Parliament (PAP) is an institution of the African Union (AU) modeled after the European Union’s (EU’s) European Parliament (EP). Both were established to promote principles of democracy and to ensure the active involvement of Union citizens in the integration process. However, the approach and commitment of the AU and the EU to the full operationalization and functioning of the two differ. Using the constructivist theory, a content analysis of relevant constitutive documents of the two parliaments is done. The paper delves into the identities and interests informing the PAP’s establishment and how far it has traveled to achieve its goals. A major finding of the paper is that although on the surface, the PAP appears to take after the EP, a number of challenges hinder it from functioning optimally. The result is a lack of commitment to a redefinition and enhancement of the functions and powers of the PAP.

At the inceptions of the United Nations (UN) on October 24 1945 and the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) on May 25 1963 — the OAU later changed to African Union (AU) in 2001— the common denominator between the AU and the UN is peace and security. While the UN created and enabled the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to function as the harbinger for global peace and security and serves as a neutral arbiter among brawled member nations, the O/AU values unity among member through the agency of the AU Peace and Security Council (PSC). The UNSC has carried out several intervention projects on African nations as elsewhere since 1945 with a view to enforcing peace and security on resistant population or transformation of existing conflicts through adoption of resolutions or direct military interventions. The conflict records of Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, and Libya only lent credence to Michael Doyle’s assertion that peace cannot be enforced on any resistant population. As such, UNSC intervention tactics have actually enabled acrimonies between the organ and the affected countries and sometimes the AU, especially, in Africa’s security affairs. This paper presses further the account that conflicts in Africa have enjoyed the combined support of the AU and the UNSC.

Agenda 2063 –The Africa We want, is both a vision and an action plan. It is the platform where the united voices of Africa have painted a picture of what they desire for themselves, for future generations and for the continent. Enshrined in the agenda are seven aspirations expressed by the people of Africa of the Africa they want. This paper is based on Aspiration 6 which calls for an Africa whose development is people-driven and one that relies on the potential of African people, especially its women and youth and cares for its children. It focuses on the African woman and the quest to cement her in her rightful roles in society and ultimately bridge the gender gap in Africa. This paper first examines the status of women in Africa as well as contributive factors to their continued low status in society. Furthermore, this paper proposes the concept of aggressive womancentrism as the way forward and highlights ways in which the African woman can be empowered to unlock her full potentials and be placed on an equal footing with men. This paper is qualitative one and utilizes an interpretivist paradigm.

Since the formation of the African Union (AU) in 2002, peace and security has been its central components. The African Union has sought to respond to the many violent conflicts on the continent with African solutions to African problems through the establishment of the African Union Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) and its components. More than a decade however, the African continent remains punctuated by violent conflicts, in, for example, Central Africa, Libya, the Lake Chad Basin region and the Sahel region. This work will assess the African Union peace and security architecture, its strength and challenges using the Central African region as analysis and offers several recommendations such as a coherent and mutually reinforcing cooperation between the African Union and regional organizations in Central Africa on regional peace and security.

The role of the African Union (AU) in the promotion of unity and solidarity of its member states remains imperative with a view to achieving development in the continent. The AU is saddled with responsibility of attaining socio–economic integration through a concerted effort to alleviate poverty and tackle corruption, to strengthening good governance through political process and civil rule which underscore transparency and accountability in the democratic system. The paper considers the economic objective of the AU and discusses the desirability to shift from intra-continental marketing to intercontinental trading and investment with other continents, diversification of her economies and strengthening of her common market, so as to impact positively to world trade and sustainable development goals. On continental peace and security, the AU also needs to adopt a stern approach against terrorism pervading the continent through legal and military options to curtail the menace. The paper identifies challenges of insecurity, incessant conflicts, overdependence on foreign Aids, corruption, political instability, inept leadership, inadequate infrastructural development, as bane of good governance and development confronting member states of AU. The paper proposes pragmatic steps to be explored by AU in curbing various challenges in a bid to improving the standard and quality of states and the African peoples.