The establishment of the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD) at the 31st African Union (AU) Summit in 2018 was a critical milestone towards accelerating the implementation of Agenda 2063. As a full-fledged development agency, AUDA-NEPAD is charged primarily with coordinating and executing priority regional and continental projects outlined in Agenda 2063.
The Agency is also mandated to mobilise the full range of resources required for the effective implementation of priority projects and to provide knowledge-based advisory services and technical assistance to AU Member States and Regional Economic Communities (RECs). Furthermore, AUDA-NEPAD monitors and evaluates the implementation of programmes and projects and serves as the Continent’s technical interface on policy development recommendation and implementation with partners and stakeholders.

The operations of the Agency are delivered through two strategic objectives –programmatic interventions and organisational excellence – as articulated in the 2020-2023 Strategic Plan. The strategic objectives are actioned through eleven core functions, summarised into four, as follows:  

​

​

The configuration of the governance mechanism and the organisational structure is informed by assessing development patterns, stakeholder needs, staffing, and funding in the institution. The figure below provides a visual representation of the governance bodies and their roles and responsibilities.

The AU, RECs and Member States have the primary responsibility for implementing development policies, strategies, and programmes for continental integration and a positive impact on the livelihood and well-being of all Africans. Therefore, appropriate policies, strategies, and instruments must be established to ensure equitable access to development opportunities in furtherance of Agenda 2063. 
Through the thematic priority areas, AUDA-NEPAD:

• Leverages the demonstrated strengths of AUDA-NEPAD with an enhanced operating model and clear mandate to sharpen its delivery capacity in complete alignment with continental and national priorities.

• Ensures that policies and decisions are implemented in continental, regional and national spheres with a sound results-based approach.

• Plays a catalytic role to support capacity development of Member States and RECs.

• Mobilises resources for the accelerated and expanded implementation of development programmes across the Continent to achieve Agenda 2063.

• Ensures horizontal linkages between RECs and Member States and vertical connections between stakeholders at continental, regional and national levels.

The Agency’s business and operating model is based on flexibility, autonomy and efficiency to develop a more precise division of labour between the African Union Commission (AUC), RECs and pan-African institutions.