AU Agenda 2063 and UN Agenda 2030
Healthy Prosperity for Africa · RSF Review I · level: international and continental · first draft for discussion · October 2026
This page applies the Relational Systems Framework (RSF) review – a systematic review of existing strategies – to the two large agendas at the top of the chain: the African Union’s Agenda 2063 with its seven aspirations and the UN’s Agenda 2030 with its 17 goals. The question is where they connect with the recovery of trust after violence and injustice – and which questions remain open for the national strategies, programmes and projects that build on them. It is an exploratory reading, not an independent evaluation.
Each agenda was read for how strongly it covers each dimension: mentioned – anchored as a goal or measure – measurable (target, responsibility and monitoring).
In short: both agendas strengthen systems – regulation, coordination and adaptation are covered with targets and indicators. Building trust and empowering people are less secured: repair after violence and the recognition of survivors appear in policy, but are hardly measured.
Functions
Functions describe what a relational system must accomplish to remain viable. Both agendas cover regulation, coordination and adaptation with targets and indicators. The open questions concern connection and repair.
| Function | AU Agenda 2063 | UN Agenda 2030 | Question for further assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regulation | anchored: peace and security (Asp. 4), “Silencing the Guns” | measurable: violence (16.1), rule of law and access to justice (16.3) | How do security and justice measures contribute to calming shaken communities and security forces? |
| Coordination | measurable: integration, free trade area, ten-year plans | measurable: partnerships, finance, data (17) | covered with targets and indicators |
| Connection | anchored: cultural identity, shared heritage (Asp. 5) | anchored: inclusive decision-making (16.7); perceived safety and satisfaction with services are measured | These measures are relevant but do not directly capture trust rebuilt between groups after violence. |
| Adaptation | measurable: climate resilience targets for 2033 | measurable: climate (13), disaster resilience (11.5) | How are resource revenues tied to the next generation? |
| Repair | anchored in AU policy: the Transitional Justice Policy (2019) addresses reconciliation, reparations and healing; a reparations decade runs 2026–2036 | mentioned: related targets on health (3.4), justice and accountable institutions (16) | How are these commitments connected with implementation, monitoring and reporting? |
Conditions
Conditions describe under which circumstances the functions can work. The RSF reads them positionally: not only whether a condition is present, but present for whom. Agenda 2030 covers predictability and reciprocity with measurable targets; the open questions lie less in coverage than in position.
| Condition | AU Agenda 2063 | UN Agenda 2030 | Present for whom? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Predictability | anchored: good governance (Asp. 3), peer review (APRM) | measurable: accountable institutions (16.6) | strong for institutions; less visible for conflict-affected areas and displaced people |
| Reciprocity | anchored: people-driven development (Asp. 6) | measurable: inequality (10), social protection (1.3), decent work (8), corruption (16.5) | income is measured; fairness between state and citizens only in part |
| Recognition | anchored: identity and heritage (Asp. 5); youth and women (Asp. 6) | anchored: “leave no one behind”; young people as agents of change (para. 51); women (5.5), legal identity (16.9) | youth agency is recognised – how does participation translate into influence? Survivors of violence and past injustice hardly appear. |
| Social embeddedness | mentioned: values and culture | anchored: local participation in single sectors (6.b, 11.3) | Is implementation shaped by locally legitimate institutions and affected communities – and whose voices are excluded? |
What the initiative responds: It adds no own goals where the agendas are well covered. It concentrates on repair and on trust between groups, brings in those who are hardly visible – survivors of violence, displaced people, communities in conflict areas – and works with religious and traditional communities as partners in implementation.
Policy references
- The AU addresses reconciliation, reparations and healing in its Transitional Justice Policy (2019). How this connects with the implementation and reporting of Agenda 2063 requires closer examination.
- AU reporting describes a guideline on mental health and psychosocial support in conflict situations as validated, with approval by its policy organs pending at the time of that report.
- Under target 3.4, the mental-health indicator of Agenda 2030 is suicide mortality – a narrow measure. Since December 2025, a UN declaration adds a global target: 150 million more people with access to mental health care by 2030.
- The UN and the World Bank name exclusion and perceived injustice as central drivers of violence (Pathways for Peace, 2018).
See sources
- African Union (2015). Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want; and Second Ten-Year Implementation Plan 2024–2033.
- United Nations (2015). Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. A/RES/70/1; and the global indicator framework for the SDGs.
- African Union (2019). Transitional Justice Policy.
- African Union Centre for Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Development (2024). Towards developing an African Union guideline on mental health and psychosocial support. Press release, April 2024.
- United Nations and World Bank (2018). Pathways for Peace: Inclusive Approaches to Preventing Violent Conflict. Washington, DC: World Bank.
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