A special partnership with the UN: an African perspective.

• Author: Hayford, Patrick
• Position: United Nations and African Union's partnership

Even before formally assuming office, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had already made it very clear, in a series of public statements, that Africa would be among his highest priorities. He highlighted, inter alia, the crisis in Darfur and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), as well as the situation in Somalia, as major African issues to which he would pay particular attention.

In a clear demonstration of the seriousness of his commitment with regard to Africa, Mr. Ban proceeded to surprise many observers by selecting the Foreign Minister of the Republic of Tanzania, Asha-Rose Migiro, as the UN Deputy Secretary-General. Moreover, in his first extended foreign official mission at the helm of the United Nations, Mr. Ban visited the DRC, Congo (Brazzaville) and Kenya, and attended the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This not only afforded the Secretary-General the opportunity to meet and exchange views with a good number of African Heads of State, but also made possible intensive consultations with key African stakeholders on several urgent situations.

These developments illustrate the extent to which Africa and its many challenges continue to occupy a central position on the UN agenda. Africa remains front and centre in the work of the United Nations, whether in the human rights area, the humanitarian domain, the development arena, or especially in the field of peace and security. However, what is often overlooked is the historic role of the United Nations vis-a-vis Africa, going back to the Organization's beginning, when relevant provisions of the UN Charter enshrined principles and procedures that created an enabling environment for the success of the struggle for independence of many African countries. In this sense, therefore, the United Nations--of the 1940s to the 1960s--could be characterized as a kind of midwife to the African liberation process. One could also recall the key role of the Organization in Namibia's evolution to independence, in the struggle against apartheid and in the general fight against racism and racial discrimination.

Today, there is a rapidly growing recognition that peace and security, economic and social development, as well as human rights, are part and parcel of one global agenda. Nowhere is this more relevant than in the work of the United Nations in Africa. Take the UN development agenda, the focus of which is on the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Africa is a...