This archive report was first published on 20 November 2019.
Dr. Arikana Chihombori-Quao, the former African Union envoy to the US, was fired on October 7, 2019, after an audit found she had abused her powers and spent AU funds on non-AU projects.
The audit, conducted from October 16 to 26, 2019, found that Dr. Chihombori-Quao had initiated 12 projects without the knowledge or approval of the AU Commission Chairperson. These projects included a diaspora health project, a beauty pageant, a trading company, and a diaspora global fund.
According to Ebba Kalondo, the Spokesperson of African Union Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat, the audit team found evidence that Dr. Chihombori-Quao had registered entities, raised funds, and endorsed diplomatic status of officials not working for the AU.
Dr. Chihombori-Quao had been appointed as the AU's Permanent Representative to the US in 2016 and served for three years. Her departure coincided with public lectures she gave weeks before she was fired, in which she called for African unity and criticized the West for crafting policies that ensure the continent remains poor.
The AU denies ever reprimanding her for her public comments, but the French government has been accused of forcing African countries to sign a pact that maintained their colonial control after independence.
