Mugabe took the rotating chairmanship of the pan-African bloc on Friday at the opening of the 24th AU summit at the AU Headquarters in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa.
Mugabe took over from Mauritania's President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who was elected AU chairman at the 22nd AU summit in January 2014.
The 24th summit kicked off with calls for the continent to boost gender equality and regional development.
Delegates from over 50 member states of the Pan-African bloc and international organisations are expected to exchange views on women's empowerment and seek ways to promote sustainable development during the two-day biannual event.
The theme of this year's gathering is "2015 Year of Women's Empowerment and Development towards Africa's Agenda 2063".
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