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The African Union (abbreviated '''AU''') is an international organisation consisting of 53 African member states. Founded in July 2002, the AU was formed as a successor to the amalgamated African Economic Community (AEC) and the Organisation Of African Unity (OAU). Eventually, the AU aims to have a single currency and a single integrated defence force, as well as other institutions of state, including a cabinet for the AU Head of State. The purpose of the organisation is to help secure Africa's Democracy , Human Rights and a Sustainable Economy , especially by bringing an end to intra-African conflict and creating an effective common market. Overview The AU is governed by the AU Assembly Of Heads Of State and the Pan African Parliament , which are both assisted by the Commission which constitutes both the secretariat and executive body of the union. The Current Chairman of the Assembly, and therefore the De Facto head of state of Africa, is Denis Sassou-Nguesso , president of Congo-Brazzaville . The current President of the Parliament is Gertrude Mongella . The current Chairman of the Commission, Alpha Oumar Konaré , leads the African Union Commission , which itself constitutes the secretariat of the African Union. The AU covers the entire continent except for Morocco , which opposes the membership of Western Sahara as the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic . However, Morocco has a special status within the AU and benefits from the services available to all AU states from the institutions of the AU, such as the African Development Bank . Moroccan delegates also participate at important AU functions, and negotiations continue to try to resolve the conflict with the Saharawi Republic . The AU's first military intervention in a member state was the May 2003 deployment of a peacekeeping force of soldiers from South Africa , Ethiopia and Mozambique to Burundi to oversee the implementation of the various agreements. AU troops are also deployed in Sudan for peacekeeping in the Darfur Conflict . Origins and history The African Union originated in the Organisation Of African Unity (OAU), which was established on May 25 , 1963 . Critics argued that the OAU did little to protect the rights and liberties of African citizens from their own political leaders, often dubbing it "The Dictators Club". The idea of an African Union, separate from the OAU began with the vision of a " United States Of Africa " of Libya n leader Muammar Al-Qaddafi , who, frustrated by developments in the Arab World , has in recent years largely given up his long-held Ideologies of Arab Nationalism and Pan-Arabism , even publicly forsaking his identity as an '' Arab ''. The heads of state and heads of government of the OAU issued the Sirte Declaration on September 9 , 1999 , calling for the establishment of an African Union. The Sirte Declaration was followed by summits at Lomé in 2000, when the Constitutive Act Of The African Union was adopted, and at Lusaka in 2001, when the plan for the implementation of the African Union was adopted. The African Union was launched in Durban on July 9 , 2002 , by its first president, South Africa n Thabo Mbeki , at the first session of the Assembly of the African Union. The second session of the Assembly was in Maputo in 2003, and the third session in Addis Ababa on July 6 , 2004 . Its Constitutive Act declares that it shall "invite and encourage the full participation of the African Diaspora as an important part of our Continent, in the building of the African Union." The African Union has defined the African diaspora as " {Link without Title} of people of African origin living outside the continent, irrespective of their citizenship and nationality and who are willing to contribute to the development of the continent and the building of the African Union." Membership .]] The African Union has 53 members, covering almost all of the continent of Africa. Current members: Suspended members:
Former members:
AU Summits :# Durban (South Africa): 9-11 Jul. 2002. :# Maputo (Mozambique): 10-11 Jul. 2003.
:# Addis Ababa (Ethiopia): 6-8 Jul. 2004. :# Abuja (Nigeria): 24-31 Jan. 2005. :# Sirte (Libya): 28 Jun. - 5 Jul. 2005. :# Khartoum (Sudan): 16-24 Jan. 2006. Organisation The current Chairman Of The African Union is Denis Sassou-Nguesso , and the Commission Chairman is Alpha Oumar Konaré . The African Union has a number of official bodies:
Financial institutions: Current issues The AU faces many challenges, including health issues such as combating Malaria and the HIV epidemic; political issues such as confronting Totalitarian , Undemocratic regimes and mediating in the many Civil War s; economic issues such as improving the Standard Of Living of millions of Impoverished , uneducated Africans; ecological issues such as dealing with recurring Famine s, Desertification and lack of ecological Sustainability ; as well as the Legal issue of the still unfinished Decolonization of Western Sahara , one of its member states (admitted to the AU under the name Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic ). In response to the ongoing Darfur Crisis in the Sudan , the AU has Deployed 300 Soldiers , mostly from Rwanda , to Darfur to protect the AU observers. As of 2004, it is considering the deployment of up to 2,500 peacekeepers to the region. In 2005 a donor's conference was held in the African Union's headquarters of Addis Ababa where enough money was raised that it is believed there will be enough money to raise AU troop levels to 7,000 in September and to 12,000 in the beginning of 2006. In response to the death of 2005 . Also, on August 3 , 2005 a coup transpired in Mauritania that led the African Union to suspend the country from all organisational activities. Although the Military Council now ruling Mauritania has promised to hold elections within two years, it is unclear whether it will be true to its word. As Of 2006 , current conflicts also include the:
However, the most serious issue to face Africa is not a dispute between nations, but rather the rapid spread of HIV . Subsaharan Africa is by far the worst affected area in the world, and as the infection is now starting to claim lives by the millions, severe destabilization of the continent is expected to follow. Controversy arose at the 2006 summit when Sudan announced a candidate for the AU's Chairmanship. Five member states threatened to withdraw support for a Sudanese candidate because of tensions over Darfur. Sudan ultimately withdrew its candidacy and Denis Sassou-Nguesso of Congo-Brazzaville was elected to a one-year term. Economy ''Main articles: African Economic Community and Economy Of Africa '' The member states' efforts to collaborate economically are impeded by the civil wars raging in several parts of Africa. The African Union provides greater powers to govern African economies. The states goals include the creation of Free Trade Area s, Customs Union s, Single Market , a Central Bank and a Common Currency and thus establishing Economic And Monetary Union . These goals could be achieved through the creation of the African Economic Community (AEC). Languages The African Union promotes the use of African Languages wherever possible in its official work. Its other working languages are Arabic , English , French and Portuguese , although many other languages are used officially by some member states. For example, Spanish is co-official with French in Equatorial Guinea . Supplemental protocols to the African Union have made Swahili an official language of the African Union. Symbols The Emblem Of The African Union consists of a Gold ribbon bearing small interlocking Red rings, from which palm leaves shoot up around an outer gold circle and an inner green circle, within which is a gold representation of Africa. The red interlinked rings stand for African solidarity and the blood shed for the liberation of Africa; the palm leaves, for peace; the gold, for Africa's wealth and bright future; the Green , for African hopes and aspirations. To symbolise African Unity , the silhouette of Africa is drawn without internal borders. The Flag Of The African Union bears a broad green horizontal stripe, a narrow band of gold, the emblem of the African Union at the centre of a broad white stripe, another narrow gold band and a final broad green stripe. Again, the green and gold symbolise Africa's hopes and aspirations as well as its wealth and bright future, and the white represents the purity of Africa's desire for friends throughout the world. The African Union has adopted a new anthem, which begins '' Let Us All Unite And Celebrate Together '', and has the chorus ''O sons and daughters of Africa, flesh of the sun and flesh of the sky, Let us make Africa the tree of life''. References
Resources External links
African Union - BBC , last updated 29 December 2004 - ''African Union'' directory category Open Directory Project - ''African Union'' directory category Yahoo - ''African Union'' directory category |