LUANDA, Angola — August 29, 2026 — African leaders and senior officials gathered in Angola’s capital on Saturday for high-level African Union consultations aimed at strengthening the continent’s ability to prevent conflicts, respond to emerging crises and pursue African-led solutions to persistent security challenges.
The discussions are centered on the 26th Extraordinary Session of the Executive Council of the African Union, which convened foreign ministers and other senior representatives in Luanda ahead of the 21st Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government scheduled for August 30. The AU says the meetings are intended to assess existing conflict-prevention institutions and identify practical measures to improve their effectiveness.
On the margins of the meetings, African Union Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf met Angolan President João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço at the State House in Luanda. Lourenço is serving as the AU Champion for Peace and Reconciliation in Africa.
According to an official AU account of the meeting, Youssouf thanked President Lourenço, the Angolan government and the country’s people for hosting the delegations. He also praised the Angolan leader’s continued engagement in efforts to advance peace, security and reconciliation across Africa.
Youssouf briefed Lourenço on the continent’s prevailing peace and security situation as African governments confront a range of challenges, including armed conflicts, interstate tensions, terrorism, violent extremism and political instability. In his address to the Executive Council, the AU Commission chairperson warned that Africa’s security environment is becoming increasingly complex and argued that the continent needs stronger mechanisms capable of intervening before crises escalate.
“A purely security-based response has shown its limitations,” Youssouf told the meeting while discussing the fight against terrorism and violent extremism. He called for stronger early-warning capabilities, timely political engagement and closer coordination among the AU Commission, Peace and Security Council, member states and regional economic communities.
The AU leadership is also seeking greater African responsibility for financing peace and security operations. Youssouf said the continent cannot continue depending primarily on external resources to fund its peace agenda and called for further strengthening of the AU Peace Fund. Stressing the importance of governments translating continental commitments into action, he told delegates that “Political will remains the cornerstone of our collective efforts.”
The Luanda summit is expected to examine the performance of the African Peace and Security Architecture and African Governance Architecture while considering ways to strengthen early warning, early political action, coordination and sustainable financing. The AU says the broader objective is to reinforce African ownership of the continent’s peace and governance agenda and improve the ability of continental institutions to prevent disputes from developing into prolonged conflicts.
The discussions come at a critical moment for African diplomacy, with several regions facing protracted conflicts and emerging security threats. Sunday’s meeting of heads of state and government is expected to build on the ministerial deliberations and consider policy measures intended to make African conflict-prevention institutions more responsive, coordinated and effective.
