{"id":4871,"date":"2026-10-24T13:31:01","date_gmt":"2026-10-24T13:31:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/?p=4871"},"modified":"2026-10-24T13:31:01","modified_gmt":"2026-10-24T13:31:01","slug":"au-warns-unequal-distribution-of-resource-wealth-can-fuel-conflict-in-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/24\/au-warns-unequal-distribution-of-resource-wealth-can-fuel-conflict-in-africa\/politics\/regional\/","title":{"rendered":"AU Warns Unequal Distribution of Resource Wealth Can Fuel Conflict in Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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The African Union Commission has warned that communities excluded from the benefits of natural resource extraction can become more vulnerable to grievances and instability, urging African governments to strengthen transparency and ensure that resource wealth benefits local populations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Selma Malika Haddadi, Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC), raised the concern at the 12th Tana High-Level Forum on Security in Africa, which opened in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia, on Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said weak oversight of resource revenues, unfair contractual arrangements and the exclusion of communities from the benefits of extraction could turn Africa\u2019s natural wealth into a source of insecurity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhere communities bear the cost of extraction while seeing little benefit, grievances deepen. Where revenues escape public oversight or sustain armed groups, wealth becomes a source of insecurity,\u201d Haddadi said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She urged governments to promote transparent contracts, strengthen public accountability and expand domestic value addition so that more of the economic benefits from natural resources remain within African countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Resource governance linked to sustainable peace<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Haddadi\u2019s remarks came as African leaders and security experts gathered for the forum under the theme \u201cPathways to Peace in Africa: Economic Sovereignty and Geopolitical Transformation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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She argued that lasting peace requires more than political commitments, stressing the need for resilient economies and action against the underlying causes of conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The AUC deputy chairperson identified economic sovereignty and effective resource governance as key elements of the African Union\u2019s Agenda 2063, alongside stronger continental institutions and practical regional integration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She also called for closer implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the AU Protocol on Free Movement of Persons to improve trade, mobility and economic opportunities across the continent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Informal traders and young people<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Beyond resource extraction, Haddadi called for stronger protection of informal cross-border traders, arguing that their livelihoods should be safeguarded rather than treating cross-border trade solely as a security issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She also highlighted the importance of involving young people in peace processes, digital innovation, climate action and economic governance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The AU, she said, remains committed to creating opportunities for young Africans to shape their societies and benefit from economic progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUnity, we affirm must become the capacity to act together. Sovereignty must improve the lives of our youth, and the peace we pursue must be sustained by their trust, participation, and shared prosperity,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Tana Forum runs from October 23 to 25 and provides a platform for African leaders, policymakers, researchers and other stakeholders to discuss peace and security challenges and explore continent-led responses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The discussions place economic sovereignty at the centre of efforts to address instability, with resource governance, regional cooperation and inclusive economic development among the issues highlighted by the African Union.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The African Union Commission has warned that communities excluded from the benefits of natural resource extraction can become more vulnerable to grievances and instability, urging […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4872,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[49,43,53,41,35,40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4871","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-africa-news","category-current_affairs","category-featured-stories","category-hot_topics","category-regional","category-top_stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4871","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4871"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4871\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4874,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4871\/revisions\/4874"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4872"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4871"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4871"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4871"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}