Trust deficit is Africa's biggest threat to peace efforts, Uhuru warns

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta. [File, Standard]

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta has warned that mistrust between governments and citizens now poses the biggest threat to peace efforts across Africa.

Kenyatta made the remarks virtually on Tuesday, May 5, during the 2026 Johannesburg Arbitration Week, saying even well-negotiated agreements collapse when trust between governments, institutions and communities has been eroded.

"Unity is not just an ideal, it is a necessity," said Kenyatta, cautioning that fragmentation within continental institutions has weakened Africa's collective voice compared to the unity that defined the early days of Pan-Africanism.

The warning echoed remarks made on the same day by  President William Ruto, who addressed the Tanzanian Parliament in Dodoma warning, regional relations have long been undermined by competition, suspicion and rivalry, which have fragmented markets and weakened Africa's collective economic power.

"Our cooperation is not a choice, it is a duty. The enemies of Tanzania are not Kenyans, and the enemies of Kenya are not Tanzanians. Our common enemies are poverty, unemployment and underdevelopment," noted Ruto.

President William Ruto appointed Kenyatta as Kenya's peace envoy to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Ethiopia after he left office in 2022.

The East African Community (EAC) heads of state later named him facilitator of the Nairobi Process, tasked with coordinating peace efforts in eastern DRC through political dialogue and inter-Congolese dialogue.

Drawing on those roles, Kenyatta told the Johannesburg forum that lasting peace depends on inclusion, equitable resource distribution and strong governance systems.

Kenyatta urged African leaders to build trust at all levels of governance and within communities, warning that without it, agreements risk failure and instability may persist.

The "Statesmen in Dialogue: Leadership and Dispute Resolution in Africa" panel brought together former heads of state to reflect on mediation and governance across the continent.

The three-day forum, hosted by the Arbitration Foundation of Southern Africa (AFSA), opened under the theme "Arbitration in a Fragmented Global Order: The Future of Trade, Investment, and Sustainable Development."

Other participants included former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, former Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano.