Addis Ababa, February 11, 2026 (FMC) – The 48th Ordinary Session of the African Union Executive Council is getting underway today at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, bringing together foreign ministers and other designated officials from AU member states to set the agenda for key continental policy decisions.
Opening statements are being delivered by Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, chairperson of the African Union Commission; Gedion Timothewos, Ethiopia’s foreign minister; Claver Gatete, executive secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa; and Téte António, chairperson of the Executive Council.
The Executive Council, one of the AU’s main policy organs, coordinates decisions on matters of common interest to member states and prepares items for consideration by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government under the AU’s Agenda 2063.
After the opening statements, the Council will move into a closed session to adopt the agenda, consider the report of the 51st Ordinary Session of the Permanent Representatives’ Committee, and review Africa’s participation in the G20. Other items under discussion include draft legal instruments, institutional governance matters, and the implementation of decisions on the Single African Air Transport Market (SACA) process.
The session will also conduct elections and appointments to AU organs, including ten members of the Peace and Security Council, three members of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and seven members of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.
The session continues through February 12, with official opening and closing ceremonies open to media coverage.