The nomination process for the next Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson and eight (8) Commissioners of the African Union (AU) Commission has been re-opened. The AU Commission has officially informed all Member States, providing detailed timeframes and deadlines for the submission of candidatures for the ten (10) positions that are open.

According to the rules of procedure of the Assembly and Executive Council, the Statutes of the Commission as well as Modalities for the Election of Members of the Commission, the candidatures for the posts of the Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson and the Commissioners are required to be circulated to Member States at least three (3) months before the election.

The elections are scheduled to be held during the 28^th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, scheduled for 30-31 January, 2017, at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

It should be recalled that the election of the Members of the AU Commission held in Kigali, Rwanda in July 2016, were suspended since none of the three (3) contenders for the position of the Chairperson of the Commission obtained the required two-thirds majority, after seven rounds of voting.

Re-opening the process allows for both the former candidates, as well as new candidates to run for any of the ten (10) positions.

In accordance with the Note Verbale sent to Member States, the schedule for the process is as follows:

1.    Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson: Candidatures should be submitted to the Commission (Office of the Legal Counsel, in sealed envelopes) on or before 30 September 2016.

2.    Commissioners:

(i) Member States should submit candidatures to their respective regions on or before  19 August 2016;

(ii) The regional consultations should be finalized and the regions should submit their candidatures to the OFFICE OF THE LEGAL COUNSEL OF THE AU COMMISSION (in sealed envelopes) on or before 16 September 2016;

(iii) The Ministerial Panel assisted by the Team of Consultants should meet and finalise its work on or before 7 October 2016;

(iv) The Commission shall circulate the list of the candidatures received from the Panel to all Member States on or before 14 October 2016 in readiness for elections of Commissioners to be undertaken by the Executive Council in January 2017.