Cash-strapped EAC and SADC turn to equally cash-strapped AU for peace funding amid DRC crisis
The AU itself is battling chronic funding shortages, raising questions about Africa's capacity to fund its own security challenges.
As violence escalates in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), regional blocs East African Community (EAC) and Southern African Development Community (SADC) are calling for urgent financial backing from the African Union (AU) to sustain peace efforts.
But there's a catch: the AU itself is battling chronic funding shortages, raising questions about Africa's capacity to fund its own security challenges.
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During a ministerial summit in Harare on Monday, EAC and SADC ministers urged the AU to lead resource mobilization for peace funds.
The hope is that the AU's Conflict Reserve Fund (CRF)—a component of the AU Peace Fund—can bridge the financial gap and attract external support.
However, the AU's financial health is anything but robust.
According to the AU's own Executive Council Decisions in February 2021, the Union's approved budget stood at $623 million, with only 32% sourced from member states.
The remaining 65%—approximately $406 million—came from external donors, mainly the European Union and individual European countries.
Despite pledges of financial self-reliance, 75% of AU initiatives remain underwritten by foreign partners, making Africa's oft-repeated call for "African solutions to African problems" ring hollow.
The EAC, too, has struggled to finance its peace operations.
When the Nairobi Process—intended to mediate the DRC conflict—was launched under former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, only Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Senegal, and Angola made token contributions.
The initiative was ultimately bankrolled by the EU, raising questions about African ownership of its peace efforts.
Despite bold declarations, neither the AU nor its constituent RECs have outlined concrete strategies to independently fund their operations.
The Harare meeting failed to specify how funds would be raised or whether member states would make direct contributions to support the fragile DRC peace process.
The absence of a financial roadmap exposes the hollow reality behind Africa's rhetoric of autonomy.
Even the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), which was succeeded by the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), has been crippled by funding woes.
Largely financed by the EU and the UK, the mission's sustainability now hinges on donor willingness, with the EU demanding more equitable burden-sharing.
The African dream of financial independence in peace and security remains just that—a dream.
Until Africa takes full financial ownership of its conflicts, external actors will continue to dictate terms, and African solutions will remain donor-dependent blueprints.
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