Adopted by the Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU) at its 1129th meeting held on 20 December 2022, on the adoption of the Conclusions of the Inaugural Lessons Learning Forum on all AU Peace Support Operations (PSOs) and on the African Standby Force (ASF), held from 1 to 3 November 2022, in Abuja, in the Federal Republic of Nigeria:

The Peace and Security Council,

Recalling all its decisions on the African Standby Force (ASF) particularly Communiqué [PSC/PR/COMM.1007(2021)] adopted at its 1007th meeting held on 8 July 2021;

Mindful of the Charter of the United Nations, which entrust the United Nations Security Council with the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security and Article 17 of the Protocol Relating to the Establishment of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union;

Determined to ensure the full operational capability (FOC) of the ASF, and also the need to ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of all AU Peace Support Operations in discharging their mandates; and

Acting under Article 7 of its Protocol, the Peace and Security Council:

1. Commends the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for hosting the Inaugural Lessons Learning Forum for all AU PSOs and the ASF, from 1 to 3 November 2022, in Abuja, Nigeria; and takes note of the offer by the Federal Government of Nigeria to host subsequent lessons-learning forums on AU PSOs and ASF, in Abuja;

2. Also commends the AU Commission for organizing the Inaugural Lessons Learned Forum as a critical platform for AU PSOs to share their experiences, lessons and best practices, with a view to ensuring their efficiency and effectiveness in discharging their respective mandates and in this respect, stresses the need to consider institutionalizing and regularizing the Forum as a biennial activity;

3. Expresses appreciation to the Republic of Namibia, as Chairperson of the PSC for the month of November 2022, for representing the Council during the Lessons Learning Forum;

4. Adopts the Conclusions of the Inaugural Lessons Learned Forum and requests the AU Commission and the Regional Economic Communities and Regional Mechanisms (RECs/RMs) to draw practical lessons from the Forum to further enhance the institutional capacity of the AU PSOs and the ASF regional standby arrangements, as well as to use the identified lessons in reviewing and reconceptualizing the ASF Concept, with a view to ensuring its alignment with the AU Doctrine on Peace Support Operations (PSO) and also to ensuring the readiness of the ASF to address the contemporary complex, multifaceted and dynamic peace and security challenges facing the Continent;

5. Directs the AU Commission to, henceforth, utilize the ASF framework in the mandating, implementation, management, and oversight of all AU PSOs, in order to ensure enhanced AU-RECs/RMs relations and collaboration in the prevention, response and resolution of conflicts in the Continent;

6. Reiterates the request for the AU Commission to expedite the finalization of the Draft Africa Common Position Paper on Financing of Africa-Led PSOs using the UN Assessed Contributions; and

7. Looks forward to the effective implementation of the Conclusions of the Forum.

Source: African Union