African Union Elections: Reality Check for Algeria and Morocco
Algeria is touting the election of Selma Malika Haddadi as Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC) as a diplomatic masterstroke, but in reality, the position holds minimal influence, and the AU remains a largely ceremonial institution with no enforcement power over Africa’s real crises.
What Does the AUC Actually Do?
The African Union Commission is the bureaucratic engine of the AU, handling administrative tasks, policy drafting, and event organizing. It is not a governing body, nor does it possess the executive authority to enforce decisions. The AU’s power structure is still dependent on individual member states, who regularly ignore AU resolutions when it suits them.
The Chairperson of the AUC is the organization’s public face, responsible for coordination, issuing statements, and managing diplomatic engagements. The Deputy Chairperson, Haddadi’s new position (see full list of candidates, and their CV, including Selma Malika Haddadi and Salah Francis ElMahdi here), is even lower in influence, handling administration, budgeting, and finance, essentially functioning as the AU’s chief accountant.
Algeria’s Overblown Rhetoric
Algerian state media has framed Haddadi’s election as a continental endorsement of Algeria’s leadership, but in practice, the position is a technical role with no strategic power. The AU does not control member states, and its statements on African conflicts, such as Sudan’s civil war, Libya’s political vacuum, and the coups in West Africa, are routinely ignored and became the norm.
Meanwhile, Morocco and Algeria continue their endless diplomatic posturing, treating every AU election as a proxy war for regional influence. Morocco tried to block Algeria’s win, and Tebboune outmanoeuvered it bribing the AU with $1 million, but its failure means little, as neither country’s maneuvering changes the AU’s broader institutional irrelevance.
Who Actually Holds Power in Africa?
The real enforcers of African affairs are foreign powers and private actors. The U.S. dominates through AFRICA Command (Africom) and its military bases and through financial sanctions, China controls economies through debt and infrastructure, Russia’s Wagner Group fights wars for dictators, and France, while lost a lot in recent years, still holds leverage over its former colonies. Meanwhile, private military contractors do the dirty work that African governments and their weak institutions cannot.
Haddadi’s election will not reshape African diplomacy, not solve a single conflict, and not strengthen the AU’s effectiveness. It is an administrative win in an organization that cannot enforce anything.
Selma Malika Haddadi, Salah Francis ElMahdi, Latifa Akharbach, or anyone else, no one cares who holds that vice-presidency. It could have been anyone. In the end, Selma Malika Haddadi will only be the accountant of an organization that has no power to enforce anything, and the tears shed were only those of the pain and humiliation she might have incurred if Latifa Akharbach had been elected accountant in her place.
Abderrahmane Fares
