AU Gender Policy (2009), includes policies and legal instruments that address the issue of women, peace and security that have paved the way for an increase in the number of women in senior level position within the Commission; the nomination of women Special Representative in countries in conflict or emerging from conflict; women mediators and Special Envoys.
African Union has increasingly demonstrated its commitment to the principle of gender equality, which is enshrined in Article 4 of its Constitutive Act.
Four key pillars currently define the AU’s gender policy framework:
A) The legal framework of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, commonly known as the Maputo Protocol.
B)The reporting framework, which calls all governments to formally report on implementation progress regarding the Solemn Declaration on Gender Equality in Africa.
C)The policy framework, which is embodied in the African Union’s Gender Policy.
D)The financial framework, whose main goal is to establish the African Fund for Women