The African Union (AU) wants joint action to tackle escalating conflicts across the continent, warning that no country can confront the security threats alone.

AU Chairperson and Burundi President Évariste Ndayishimiye said African countries must pool resources and deepen coordination through the continent’s regional bodies to prevent and resolve conflicts.

He cautioned that the worsening war in Sudan continues to exact a heavy human and material cost.

“The situation has gradually deteriorated in full view of everyone, and today we sweat, praying to God that this war will end, given that we have already suffered significant losses both human and material,” he said.

Ndayishimiye lamented that people across the Sahel are suffering, while Sudan’s war risks spreading to neighbouring countries and in the Democratic Republic of Congo, fighting continues despite various agreements and peace processes.

He said, “We are therefore on two simultaneous fronts: that of prevention and that of the management and resolution of existing violent conflicts.”

African Union leaders say, therefore, the Regional Economic Communities and Regional Mechanisms remain central to preventive diplomacy.

During the one-day extraordinary summit in Luanda, they pushed for continuous consultation between the Peace and Security Council, the AU Commission, member states, and regional bodies.