Burundi Takes Helm of African Union with Urgent Focus on Water Crisis

In a pivotal leadership transition at the 39th Ordinary Session of the African Union (AU) Assembly, President Évariste Ndayishimiye of the Republic of Burundi was elected Chairperson for 2026. This handover from Angola’s President João Lourenço places Burundi at the helm of a continent confronting interconnected crises: political instability, economic pressures, and a fundamental struggle for water security. The summit, held at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, adopted a high-stakes theme: “Assuring Sustainable Water Availability and Safe Sanitation Systems to Achieve the Goals of Agenda 2063.” This decision signals a strategic pivot, elevating water from an environmental issue to a core political and security priority for Africa’s future.

Introduction: A New Chair, A Critical Mandate

The election of Burundi, a landlocked East African nation, carries symbolic weight. It underscores the AU’s principle of rotational leadership and brings a unique perspective from a region acutely vulnerable to water stress and climate variability. President Ndayishimiye inherits an agenda dominated by the urgent need for continental infrastructure development and the persistent challenge of “silencing the guns.” The choice of water security as the 2026 theme is a direct response to alarming statistics: according to the UN, over 400 million Africans lack access to basic drinking water, and water scarcity affects nearly every corner of the continent. This is not merely about wells and pipelines; it is about framing water as a collective good essential for peace, public health, food security, and the realization of Africa’s long-term development blueprint, Agenda 2063.

Key Points: The 2026 AU Leadership and Core Agenda

The outcomes of the 39th AU Summit establish a clear leadership structure and priority framework for the coming year.

The 2026 AU Bureau Composition

The Assembly confirmed the new Bureau of the Heads of State and Government, ensuring regional balance:

• Chairperson: Republic of Burundi (Central Africa)
• First Vice-Chairperson: Republic of Ghana (West Africa)
• Second Vice-Chairperson: United Republic of Tanzania (East Africa)
• Third Vice-Chairperson: To be confirmed (North Africa)
• Rapporteur: Republic of Angola (Southern Africa)

Ghana’s appointment as First Vice-Chair is particularly significant given the severe security crises unfolding in the Sahel region, positioning West Africa at the forefront of continental security discussions.

The Overarching Theme: Water as a Political & Strategic Priority

Outgoing Chair President Lourenço and AU Commission Chairperson H.E. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf explicitly framed the water crisis as more than an environmental challenge. They defined it as a:

• Political priority: Requiring high-level governance and cross-border cooperation.
• Ethical imperative: Tied to human dignity and the right to life.
• Strategic necessity: Fundamental to agricultural productivity, industrial growth, and social stability.

The link between water scarcity and conflict was emphasized, with calls to manage water resources to “promote peace rather than strife.”

Background: The Context of Africa’s Water Struggle

To understand the gravity of the AU’s 2026 focus, one must examine the deep-rooted and worsening context of water insecurity across the continent.

The Scale of the Challenge

Africa is home to some of the world’s most water-stressed nations. Key factors include:

• Climate Change: Increasing frequency of droughts and erratic rainfall patterns, particularly in the Sahel and Horn of Africa.
• Rapid Urbanization: Cities are expanding faster than water and sanitation infrastructure can be built, leading to slums with inadequate services.
• Population Growth: A booming youth population intensifies demand for water in agriculture, industry, and domestic use.
• Transboundary Water Tensions: Many of Africa’s major rivers (Nile, Niger, Congo) cross multiple borders, creating potential for disputes over allocation and dam construction.

The lack of safe water and sanitation is directly linked to high rates of waterborne diseases (cholera, typhoid), child mortality, and lost economic productivity.

Link to Agenda 2063 and the SDGs

The AU’s Agenda 2063 aspires for a prosperous, integrated, and peaceful Africa. Sustainable Development Goal 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation) is intrinsically linked to this vision. Progress on water and sanitation is a prerequisite for achieving goals related to health (SDG 3), gender equality (SDG 5), decent work (SDG 8), and climate action (SDG 13). The 2026 theme is therefore an attempt to accelerate progress on multiple fronts simultaneously.

Analysis: Deconstructing the Summit’s Resolutions and Rhetoric

The summit’s declarations reveal a continent at a crossroads, seeking agency amid global headwinds and internal fractures.

The Call for Fiscal Self-Reliance and Technological Sovereignty

A recurrent and urgent theme was the need for Africa to reduce dependency on foreign aid and investment. AU Commission Chair Youssouf stated bluntly that “institutional reform and fiscal self-reliance are now crucial as external financing declines.” This points to:

• Domestic Resource Mobilization: Improving tax collection, combating illicit financial flows, and developing capital markets to fund infrastructure projects, including water and sanitation.
• Reforming Multilateral Finance: Advocating for changes in global financial institutions to provide more concessional lending for African infrastructure.

Complementing this economic call was a technological one. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed urged Africa to stop being reactive and start shaping global technological trends. His reference to Ethiopia’s AI initiatives, including plans for a dedicated AI university, frames technological innovation—particularly in areas like smart water management, climate modeling, and agricultural efficiency—as a key to achieving self-reliance.

The Persistent Shadow of Conflict: “Silencing the Guns”

Despite the forward-looking agenda, the summit could not escape the grim reality of ongoing conflicts. UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for a stronger UN-AU strategic partnership and reiterated the need for UN Security Council reform, including permanent African representation. President Lourenço, reflecting on his tenure, noted that while the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is a major achievement, the “guns” still blazing in Sudan, Eastern DRC, and the Sahel are major obstacles to Agenda 2063. His warning against “legitimizing coups through subsequent elections” reaffirms the AU’s zero-tolerance for unconstitutional changes of government—a principle frequently tested in recent years.

The analysis here is clear: water insecurity can exacerbate tensions over resources, displace communities, and hinder development, making peace and water security inseparable agendas.

Practical Advice: What the AU’s 2026 Focus Means for Stakeholders

The summit’s conclusions are not just diplomatic statements; they imply actions for various actors.

For African Governments and Regional Bodies

• Integrate Water Security into National Planning: Ministries of water, finance, agriculture, and defense must collaborate on national water security strategies aligned with the AU theme.
• Strengthen Transboundary Water Governance: Actively participate in and implement agreements for shared river basins (e.g., Nile Basin Initiative, Volta Basin Authority).
• Prioritize Investment: Allocate greater portions of national budgets to water infrastructure, sanitation, and water-efficient technologies, leveraging public-private partnerships.
• Leverage the AfCFTA: Use the continental trade area to facilitate the trade of water-related goods, services, and technology, and to harmonize regulations.

For International Partners and Donors

• Align with AU Priorities: Support programs that directly bolster the 2026 water security agenda, focusing on capacity building, technology transfer, and catalytic financing.
• Respect African Agency: Support the AU’s call for fiscal self-reliance by providing grants and concessional loans that build sustainable financial systems rather than creating dependency.
• Support Peace-Water Nexus Initiatives: Fund projects that use cooperative water management as a tool for conflict prevention and peacebuilding in fragile regions.

For Civil Society and Communities

• Advocacy and Monitoring: Hold governments accountable for commitments on water and sanitation, using tools like the AU’s own monitoring frameworks.
• Community-Led Solutions: Promote and scale up context-appropriate, community-managed water and sanitation systems, especially in rural and peri-urban areas.
• Climate Adaptation: Integrate traditional knowledge with modern science to manage local water resources sustainably in the face of climate change.

FAQ: Understanding the AU’s 2026 Water Security Focus

What is the African Union’s Agenda 2063?

Agenda 2063 is the AU’s strategic framework for the socio-economic transformation of the continent over 50 years. It envisions an integrated, prosperous, and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in the international arena. The 2026 water theme is a concrete step toward achieving its goals, particularly Aspiration 1 (Prosperity) and Aspiration 6 (Peaceful and Secure Africa).

Does the African Union have the power to enforce its decisions on member states?

The AU operates on principles of sovereignty and consensus. It does not have a centralized enforcement mechanism like a federal government. Its power lies in moral suasion, peer pressure, and the use of instruments like the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (ACDEG). The “zero-tolerance” policy for coups is enforced through sanctions and suspension from AU organs. Therefore, the success of the 2026 water agenda depends on voluntary commitment, peer learning, and the mobilization of political will among member states.

How is water security directly linked to peace and security in Africa?

Water scarcity can be a “threat multiplier.” It can:

• Intensify competition between agricultural, industrial, and domestic users.
• Spark disputes between communities or nations sharing transboundary water sources.
• Drive rural-to-urban migration and cross-border displacement, increasing pressure on urban services and potentially fueling social unrest.
• Undermine livelihoods (especially in agriculture and pastoralism), creating grievances that can be exploited by armed groups.

Conversely, cooperative water management can build trust, foster interdependence, and create platforms for broader dialogue and peacebuilding.

What is the role of the new AU Bureau, especially Ghana as First Vice-Chair?

The AU Bureau provides strategic direction between Assembly sessions. As First Vice-Chair, Ghana will play a crucial role in coordinating the implementation of the 2026 theme. Given Ghana’s relative stability and its leadership in ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States), its role is pivotal in addressing the Sahel crises, which are deeply intertwined with resource pressures, including water. Ghana can help bridge discussions between conflict-affected regions and more stable ones.

Conclusion: From Theme to Tangible Action

The election of Burundi and the adoption of a water security theme mark a potentially transformative year for the African Union. The rhetoric is clear and correct: water is a political, strategic, and ethical priority. However, the summit’s ultimate legacy will be measured in “measurable commitments” that translate into boreholes, sanitation facilities, water-efficient policies, and, most importantly, reduced water-related conflicts. The challenges are immense—persistent insecurity, financing gaps, and the accelerating impacts of climate change. Yet, the alignment of the water agenda with the goals of Agenda 2063, the AfCFTA, and the push for technological sovereignty provides a coherent roadmap. Success will require not just high-level diplomacy but sustained investment, innovative financing, regional cooperation on shared basins, and the active engagement of African citizens and the diaspora. As Burundi assumes the chair, the continent will be watching to see if this “struggle” on water can be turned into a story of collective triumph.