The African Peer Review Mechanism, an innovative and ambitious governance initiative, was launched in 2003. The Mechanism is a self-monitoring initiative, voluntarily acceded to by States members of the African Union, aimed at promoting good governance in Africa through the sharing of experiences and reinforcement of good practices among countries. The Mechanism, however, started to face challenges in 2011.

Through this project, ECA intensified efforts to revitalize the Mechanism and contribute to improving the quality of the governance reviews of countries by ensuring that consultations with citizens, self assessments and peer reviews were conducted in line with the Mechanism principles of national ownership and leadership, inclusiveness, independence and transparency. Through the project, ECA supported the launch of constructive national and continental dialogues through participatory and informed self-assessment processes in 12 countries and three sub-regions. All countries that benefited from the project sensitization exercise either launched or completed their self-assessment or have been peer-reviewed. The project results demonstrate progress towards improving the governance landscape on the continent by empowering African citizens to hold their leaders accountable, with self reviews and external reviews serving as early warning systems of impending threats to peace and stability.