CMI supports the African Union in responding to conflicts on the continent through preventive diplomacy and peace mediation. The “African Union Mediation Support Capacity Project”, launched in 2009, entered into its second three-year phase in September 2012. The project is implemented in collaboration with the African Union’s Conflict Management Division (AU CMD) and the African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD) and is part of larger United Nations and African Union capacity building framework.
 
Over the next three years, CMI will, at the request of the continental organization, provide support to ongoing African Union Mediation Initiatives. In addition to this direct operational support, CMI will support the AU in conflict prevention by mapping key stakeholders in conflict prone countries identified by the organization and by bringing these stakeholders together to discuss the future of each country. During the phase II, CMI will also assist the AU in debriefing its mediation teams and complete sub-regional mappings of African non-state actors in the field of mediation to inform the AU about the mediation expertise on the ground.
 
The project is funded by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland.