President William Ruto has skipped the Sixth Mid-Year Coordination Meeting of the African Union (AU) currently being held in Ghana, highlighting a possible change of tact as the Head of State moves to cool political temperatures in the country.

The meeting is aimed at enhancing coordination and cooperation among the AU, Regional Economic Communities (RECs), and Member States to advance Africa's development and integration agenda.

Ruto skipping the event is particularly significant because in February 2024, he was designated the African Union Champion for Institutional Reform, a post that was initially held by President Paul Kagame of Rwanda.

In this capacity, Ruto is supposed to spearhead reforming the structure, functioning and focus of the African Union Commission, AU Organs and Specialised Agencies so that they become more effective and efficient in managing the programmes of the continental body.

For this particular meeting taking place in Ghana, the discussions will revolve around strengthening multilateral institutions that will shore up economic relations among African member states.

The meeting is also intended to assess the status of continental integration and coordinate efforts to accelerate the integration process, coordinate the implementation of a clear division of labor, and effective collaboration between the Union and African States.

The event also intends to coordinate and harmonize African Union policies to accelerate Africa’s integration process, and also identify areas of cooperation, and establish mechanisms for regional, and continental reforms.

This comes at a time when President Ruto is scrambling to reassert his authority back home which has recently been battered by protests as youth continue to agitate for accountability from the government.

What started out as Anti-Finance Bill protests quickly morphed into a movement demanding the President to purge his government to ensure better governance and service delivery for all Kenyans.

Before the protests began, President Ruto faced a lot of criticism for his numerous foreign trips. The Head of State, at the time, justified the trips arguing that they were meant to strengthen bilateral relations with development partners.  

President Ruto has since reduced his foreign trips due to the pressure exacerbated by Gen Z who had stormed the streets to push for key government reforms.

The protests culminated in the president dissolving his cabinet, but he has since renominated four members.

State House was yet to comment on why President Ruto did not attend the AU meeting by the time of publishing this article.