In recognition of the imperatives of good governance for development, the Sixth Summit of the Heads of State and Government Implementation Committee (HSGIC) of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), held in March 2003 in Abuja, Nigeria, adopted the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). The APRM, which is turning out to be the most innovative aspect of NEPAD, is an instrument voluntarily acceded to by member states of the African Union (AU) as a self-monitoring initiative for good governance.

The African Peer Review (APR) process entails periodic reviews of the policies and practices of participating states to ascertain progress being made towards achieving mutually agreed goals and compliance with agreed political, economic and corporate governance values, codes and standards as outlined in the Declaration on Democracy, Political, Economic and Corporate Governance.

In order to ensure the professionalism and integrity of the whole process, a Panel of Eminent Persons (or the APR Panel) has been set up. Deliberately drawn from all the five subregions of Africa, the APR Panel currently comprises the following persons: Professor Adebayo Adedeji from Nigeria; Ambassador Bethuel Kiplagat from Kenya; Mrs Graça Machel from Mozambique; Professor Mohammed Seghir Babès from Algeria; Mrs Domitila Mukantagazwa from Rwanda; and Professor Dorothy Njeuma from Cameroon.

Twenty-nine out of 53 AU member states had signed up for the APRM by April 2009. Participating countries include Algeria, Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania3, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and Zambia. The APR Panel has launched reviews in 16 countries.

Eleven of these countries have received review missions. The next countries in line for peer review are Mali, Mozambique and Lesotho.