In 2002, South African President
Thabo Mbeki served as the inaugural chairman of the union. The post rotates annually amongst the five
geographic regions of Africa; and over the years it has assumed the following order: East, North, Southern, Central and West Africa. In January 2007, the assembly elected Ghanaian President
John Kufuor over Sudan's President
Omar al-Bashir due to the ongoing
conflict in Darfur.
Amnesty International said it would undermine African Union's credibility and
Chad threatened to withdraw its membership. Western governments also lobbied against Sudan and suggested
Tanzania as a compromise candidate from the East African region. By consensus, Ghana was elected instead as it was celebrating its 50th independence anniversary that year. . In January 2010, Libyan Leader
Muammar Gaddafi unsuccessfully tried to extend his tenure by an additional year, saying more time was needed in order to implement his vision for a
United States of Africa - of which he was a strong proponent. Libya was at the time one of the largest financial supporters of the AU.
Malawi was chosen instead. The election of Equatoguinean President
Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo in January 2011 was criticized by human rights activists as it undermined the AU's commitment to democracy. Congolese Republic President
Denis Sassou Nguesso and Zimbabwean President
Robert Mugabe have both led the AU and its predecessor, the
Organisation of African Unity during the terms 1986–88 and 2006–07, and 1997–98 and 2015–16 respectively. In 2023, both
Kenya and
Comoros were vying for the position. Comorian President
Azali Assoumani thanked Kenyan President
William Ruto for his country's withdrawal. In 2024, Both
Algeria and
Morocco were interested in the position in 2024.
Mauritania was elected instead. For 2025,
Botswana had sought an interest; however Angola was selected. ==Role==