Nigeria, Feb. 16 -- The leaders of African Union countries have elected Djibouti's foreign minister, Mahmoud Youssouf, as the chairperson of the AU Commission.

Mr Youssouf was elected on Saturday during the African Union (AU) Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The summit was attended by African leaders including President Bola Tinubu of Nigeria.

Mr Youssouf emerged the winner of the keenly contested election, defeating Kenya's former prime minister, Raila Odinga, and Madagascar's former foreign minister, Richard Randriamato.

Mr Youssouf, who will serve a four-year term, replaces Moussa Faki of Chad, who has held the position since 2017.

He won the election in the seventh round with 33 votes after Mr Odinga was eliminated.

He will now ...