On 26 January, the Special Representative of the Secretary General to the African Union and Head of UNOAU, Parfait Onanga-Anyanga met with the Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Ethiopia and Permanent Representative to the African Union and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Mr Ngandu Ilunga Jean Léon, who served as Chairperson of the AU Peace and Security Council for January 2026.
Discussions focused on the programme of work of the Peace and Security Council for January, conflict situations across the continent, and measures to address them.
The Ambassador highlighted plans for the Peace and Security Council to convene a meeting on 28 January on the revitalisation and consolidation of the sanctions subcommittee. The meeting is expected to review its mandate and terms of reference, share experiences with United Nations experts, and assess the effectiveness of AU instruments, including the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance and the Protocol establishing the AU Peace and Security Council.
The SRSG recalled that the United Nations has previously shared practical lessons on Security Council sanctions processes and practices at dedicated AU PSC related meetings. He reaffirmed UNOAU’s continued readiness, working with the Security Council Affairs Division (SCAD), to coordinate delivery of dedicated sessions on, inter alia, the UN sanctions regime.
