The African Union (AU) and the United Nations (UN) have signed two agreements to strengthen operational support, institutional capacity and preparedness for future peace support operations.

A statement on Wednesday said the agreements were signed at a ceremony at the UN Headquarters in New York on Monday.

The agreements were signed by the Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Selma Malika Haddadi, and the UN Under-Secretary-General for Operational Support, Atul Khare.

The statement said that Ms. Haddadi and Mr Khare underscored the importance of moving beyond coordination towards greater strategic alignment, shared priorities and practical cooperation. 

“They highlighted sustained knowledge exchange, institutional capacity development and strong operational support systems as essential to strengthening the AU’s ability to plan, deploy and sustain peace support operations,” the statement read.

 “As global and continental challenges become increasingly complex, our corporation must continue to evolve from coordination to strategic alignment, guided by our shared priorities, mutual accountability and measured impact” said Ms. Haddadi.

Also, Mr Khare said, “Our cooperation has demonstrated the value of sustained and practical capacity development, grounded in shared objectives and mutual learning.”

He added that the renewal of the agreements provided an important foundation for the next phase of the partnership and for further strengthening African Union ownership, institutional capacity and operational readiness.

The statement noted renewed agreements built on nearly a decade of cooperation under KEEP, established in 2016 and revitalised in 2022, with a growing focus on capacity development, institutional strengthening and shared learning across areas including mission planning, supply chains, finance, human resources and ICT.

It explained that the inaugural programme held in Algiers from July 19 to 23, 2026, further demonstrated the value of the cooperation, bringing AU and UN expertise together to strengthen institutional capacity and operational readiness.