Burundi set to lead AU strategic priorities for 2026

Burundi’s President Évariste Ndayishimiye is expected to assume the African Union’s rotating presidency at the close of the AU’s 39th Ordinary Summit, scheduled for February 14–15, 2026, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He will take over from Angolan President João Lourenço, who currently chairs the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government.

Under the AU’s rotation principle, the chairmanship is held for one year by a sitting head of state or government. While the role is not an executive presidency over the AU’s institutions, it carries significant political weight: the chair helps steer summit-level discussions, represents the Union at high-level engagements, and can influence momentum around agreed continental priorities during their term.

A one-year mandate amid high-pressure priorities

Ndayishimiye’s anticipated tenure comes as the AU faces overlapping pressures across peace and security, economic development, regional integration, and governance areas consistently featured on summit agendas and closely tied to Agenda 2063 implementation. The February summit is expected to bring together leaders to address major continent-wide issues, with decisions and declarations that often set the political tone for the year ahead.

For Burundi, taking the chair would place Bujumbura in a prominent convening position within the AU’s top political body for 2026. The chairmanship can help spotlight diplomatic initiatives, encourage coordination among member states, and reinforce follow-through on decisions adopted by the Assemblyespecially on cross-border security coordination and regional stability, which remain recurring themes in AU deliberations.

Addis Ababa summit: the formal handover point

The AU’s 39th summit is scheduled at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa, a regular meeting point for the Union’s annual leadership transition and headline policy debates. The AU maintains an official summit information hub for announcements, documents, and updates tied to the session.

If confirmed at the summit’s conclusion, the transition would mark the end of Lourenço’s chairmanship and the start of Burundi’s year-long stewardship of the Assembly’s political calendar an agenda typically dominated by conflict prevention and mediation efforts, economic and trade coordination, institutional reform discussions, and implementation tracking for continental initiatives.

What to watch during Burundi’s chairmanship

With the chair rotating annually, expectations tend to focus less on sweeping institutional change and more on coordination, consistency, and political drive. The AU chair’s impact often shows up in:

• Diplomatic coordination: encouraging alignment among regional blocs and member states on shared priorities.

• Follow-through: maintaining attention on summit decisions and keeping implementation on the agenda.

• Consensus-building: using the platform to bridge differences around sensitive governance and security questions.

  
  

In the article’s framing, Burundi’s presidency is expected to demonstrate its ability to strengthen cooperation among member states and support the AU’s strategic priorities at a demanding moment for the continent.