The 2026 African Union Summit convened in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from February 11 to 15, with the Assembly of African Union (AU) heads of state and government meeting on February 14 and 15. During this pivotal gathering, Angola passed the rotating chairmanship of the bloc to Burundi, with President Évariste Ndayishimiye set to assume the role of AU chairman for 2026. The summit's official theme, "water," underscored the severe impact of the climate crisis, particularly devastating floods across the continent, and the urgent necessity for sustainable water management.

Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, chairperson of the AU Commission, emphasized the critical importance of water during the executive council meeting, stating, "In the face of observed climate disruptions, the prudent use of water in all aspects of daily life is a major imperative. This vital resource must be perceived as a collective good, to be preserved at all costs, and as a vector for bringing our states closer together and for peace." This theme highlights the continent's vulnerability to climate change, which has been described as 'supercharging' deadly floods in southern Africa.

Beyond environmental concerns, the summit confronted a complex array of political and security challenges. Experts noted the summit occurred "against a backdrop of intensifying global fragmentation, shrinking multilateralism, escalating conflicts, deepening debt distress, and growing climate stress," as articulated by Desire Assogbavi, an international development strategist. Conflict and security were paramount on the agenda, exacerbated by contested elections, repression of dissent, and prolonged states of emergency prevalent across the continent.

The severity of these challenges was further discussed during a meeting between Youssouf and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres at the AU headquarters. They focused on strengthening multilateralism amidst what Guterres termed "heightened global uncertainty." Youssouf voiced particular concern over widespread "political instability, security crises, and unconstitutional changes of government." While acknowledging some progress in Gabon and Guinea, he noted setbacks in Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau and highlighted persistent terrorist threats in regions like the Sahel and Horn of Africa, asserting that despite minimal regression and progress, AU mediators remain active.

However, the AU's capacity to effectively address these crises drew skepticism. Clionadh Raleigh, director of the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data organisation and a professor of African politics and conflict at the University of Sussex, critiqued the organization as "totally incompetent," citing its inability to represent a coalition of African states both internally and externally. She described the AU's internal processes as "factionalised and bureaucratic and just generally incompetent," leading to vulnerabilities that external actors might exploit.

Ongoing conflicts in Sudan, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the Sahel, and Libya, alongside re-emerging conflicts in South Sudan and Ethiopia, underscore the limitations of current security solutions. Despite these challenges, AU Commission spokesman Nuur Mohamud Sheekh pointed to instances where the AU had successfully helped de-escalate political tensions and supported dialogue, such as preventing war between Sudan and South Sudan over the Abyei region.

Conversely, a recent report by the International Crisis Group (ICG) indicated that "At a time when the AU is needed the most, it is arguably at its weakest since it was inaugurated." Kinkoh Hubert of the UK think tank Chatham House identified the situation in Sudan as a "defining test" for AU leadership. He emphasized the summit as a "narrow but critical window to reset the continental response," warning that without decisive action, Sudan risks irreversible fragmentation, the collapse of national institutions, and intensified cross-border spillovers.