One day before the elections for the position of First Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission, the Algerian president announced a generous donation to the continental organization, raising many questions. Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said on Friday, February 14, that his country will voluntarily contribute one million dollars to the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) to stimulate and implement its programs. The body, established in 2003 by the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) Heads of State and Government Implementation Committee (HSGIC), is an instrument for AU Member States to voluntarily self-monitor their governance performance. During his speech at the opening of the 34th Ordinary Session of the African Peer Review Mechanism Forum of Heads of State and Government, in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, President Tebboune said that «the critical financial situation of our mechanism hinders its work and affects the implementation of its programs». Tebboune presided over this session as the President of the Forum of Heads of State and Government of the African Peer Review Mechanism. Several heads of state and government of this African mechanism participated in the proceedings of the summit, along with officials from various structures and institutions of the African Union. This generous donation comes one day before elections for the position of First Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission, a role that will go to the North African region. Three countries are competing for the position : Morocco, represented by Latifa Akharbach, the current president of the High Authority for Audiovisual Communication; Algeria, which nominated Salima Malika Haddadi, the ambassador to Ethiopia and former director of African affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and Egypt's Hanan Morsi, Deputy Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. Before Tebboune announced this donation, Algerian media attacked Egypt and accused it of «turning against» Algeria by nominating Hanan Morsi for the position «unexpectedly», even though the Egyptian Foreign Ministry had announced her nomination last December. Algerian news sites, known for their proximity to decision-makers in Algeria, claimed that Egypt had «previously committed to Algeria to support and give its vote to the Algerian candidate Malika Haddadi». The same sources questioned the reasons behind «this incomprehensible Egyptian step», adding that «the Egyptian decision was not preceded by any electoral campaign for Cairo's candidate, which suggests that the move has strange objectives». Money diplomacy Since President Tebboune came to power, Algeria has been trying to present itself as a pivotal state on the African continent. Despite maintaining good relations with some southern African countries, ongoing developments have hindered its influence, as disputes with Sahel nations have emerged, with less presence in both West and East Africa. Algeria is trying to find a foothold among the influential countries on the continent, relying on money from oil exports, as it had previously written off debts of 3.5 billion dollars for 14 African countries. In February 2023, the Algerian president decided to finance development projects in Africa worth one billion dollars through the Algerian Agency for International Cooperation for Solidarity and Development, a governmental body established in 2020. Although Algeria is close to obtaining membership in the African Union's Peace and Security Council, replacing Morocco, its mission to secure the position of Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission seems difficult in the presence of Egypt and Morocco. Morocco and Algeria had previously expressed their desire to win the presidency of the African organization for 2024, but due to their disputes, they withdrew from the race in favor of the President of Mauritania, Mohamed Ould El Ghazouani. It is expected that Egypt will exploit the complex disputes between the two countries to secure the position.
