Pretoria - The 16th African Union (AU) summit opened on Sunday in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa, as African leaders gathered to discuss peace, security and stability on the continent.
The summit's theme "Towards Greater Unity and Integration Through Shared Values," is likely to be overshadowed by heated discussions on a number of thorny issues including the political crisis in Cote d'Ivoire, the social unrest in Tunis and Egypt, the post-referendum reconstruction in Sudan and the deteriorating situation in Somalia.
President Jacob Zuma has been among the leaders calling for a speedy and peaceful solution to the issue of Cote d'Ivoire.
African countries at the summit on Sunday were expected to have intense discussions on the situation, hoping to reach consensus on how to deal with the country's political impasse. The regional bloc of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has threatened the use of force to let Laurent Gbagbo, the incumbent president, to cede power to his rival, the internationally-backed Alassane Ouattara.
Meanwhile, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Saturday arrived in the Ethiopian capital to attend a meeting on the New Partnership of Africa's Development (NEPAD), ahead of the summit.
Upon departure from New York, Ban said development, climate change and achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will be the priorities of the summit.
AU Chief, Jean Ping, said he expected the gathering to be a summit of divergences. Jean Ping made the remarks at a press conference at the AU headquarters ahead of the summit.
"Ever since I took (over as) the head of the union, it seems to me that this summit might take us towards serious divergences, divergences over essential questions. Cote d'Ivoire, Tunisia, south Sudan ..." he said.
"We have many problems in Africa and this summit will examine all these problems. But when talking about good news, we have the theme of this summit. It is relative to good governance, to democracy, to human rights, to state of law, to fight against corruption ..." he said.
He said the theme of the summit will undoubtedly bring out an intense debate.
