African Union picks new leader as Gadhafi exits

Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika is the new leader of the African Union.

(CNN) -- The African Union has elected a new president, ending a bid by Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi to stay on as president of the organization for another year.

Leaders from 53 African countries chose Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika as the organization's new leader during an annual summit Sunday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon used his speech to address issues including peace, saying African leaders and the United Nations have a responsibility to war-ravaged countries such as Sudan.

He urged the leaders to help find a way forward for Sudan and support various U.N. efforts, including increasing its presence in the country as balloting nears. National elections are in April and southerners will vote in January 2011 on whether to become an independent nation.

"In Sudan, time is of the essence," Ban said. "The elections are three months away. The two referenda to determine the future shape of Sudan are in just under a year."

The African Union seeks to boost cooperation and solidarity on the continent. Only heads of state are chosen as leaders, a position that rotates among African regions every year.

Controversy abounded during Gadhafi's tenure as he pushed to integrate the continent into a United States of Africa, which critics called impractical.

He rose to power in Libya after a coup in 1969 and has become one of the world's longest-serving leaders.

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