Senegalese President Macky Sall on Saturday took over from his Democratic Republic of Congo counterpart Felix Tshisekedi as the new Chairperson of the African Union.
Sall officially assumed the position at the 35th African Union Summit that is being held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Sall was endorsed for the position by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which was lined up to name the next AU Chairperson.
He will serve in the position for the 2022-2023 period.
His tenure will mark the fourth time a Senegalese leader will be at the helm of the continental body after Léopold Sédar Senghor (1980) and Abdou Diouf (1985 and 1992).
Sall assumption of the AU chairperson position comes at the backdrop of political turmoil that has hit the West African region.
Several West African countries have been under the rule of a military junta, they include Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso.
Another member of the ECOWAS, Guinea-Bissau survived a coup earlier this week after forces loyal to President Umaro Sissoco Embalo repelled assailants with machine guns and assault rifles, after they attacked the government palace where the president was meeting his cabinet.
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