Malcolm Rivera
The African Union (AU) is an intergovernmental organization that works to increase cooperation, stability, and development within the African continent. It was officially launched in 2002 as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) and consists of 55 member states that make up the countries of the African continent. The AU has the power to militarily intervene on behalf of its members, as outlined in Article 4(h) of the Constitutive Act. The AU's work is implemented through various decision-making organs, including the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, the Executive Council, the Permanent Representatives Committee, and the Peace and Security Council. The AU aims to defend the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence of its members, promote international cooperation, and encourage democratic principles and human rights.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of independent countries | 55 |
| Number of member states | 55 |
| Number of republics | 52 |
| Number of monarchies | 3 |
| Total population | 1,068,444,000 (2013) |
| Date launched | 2002 |
| Headquarters | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
| Number of suspensions | 6 (as of August 2023, an all-time high) |
| Number of regions | 5 |
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What You'll Learn
The African Union has 55 member states
The African Union (AU) is a continental body consisting of 55 member states that make up the countries of the African continent. The AU was officially launched in 2002 as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), 1963-1999. The AU has the power to militarily intervene on behalf of its member states, as laid out in Article 4(h) of the Constitutive Act of the African Union. The AU's work is implemented through several principal decision-making organs, including the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, the Executive Council, the Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC), and the Peace and Security Council. The AU also has judicial and legal organs, such as the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR) and the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights (AfCHPR).
The AU's 55 member states are grouped into five regions and consist of fifty-two republics and three monarchies. The AU spans the entirety of the African continent, with the exception of some offshore islands controlled by European countries and Spanish North African semi-enclaves. The AU includes every internationally recognized country with a capital in Africa. The AU's most recent member state is Morocco, which joined on 31 January 2017. Morocco had previously been a member of the OAU but withdrew in 1984 following the organization's acceptance of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic as a member state.
The AU has several goals, including promoting cooperation and stability within the continent of Africa, defending the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its member states, eradicating all forms of colonialism from Africa, and promoting international cooperation in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The AU also aims to promote democratic principles, popular participation, and good governance, as well as protect human and peoples' rights in accordance with the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights.
The AU has been active in addressing crises in several countries, including Darfur, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Ivory Coast. It has established AU peacekeeping operations in Somalia and Darfur and imposed sanctions against persons undermining peace and security. The AU is also working towards the establishment of continental financial institutions, such as the African Central Bank and the African Investment Bank.
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Three of these are monarchies
The African Union (AU) is a continental body consisting of 55 member states that make up the countries of the African continent. The AU was officially launched in 2002 as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU).
Of the 55 member states, 52 are republics and three are monarchies. Two of these monarchies, Lesotho and Morocco, are constitutional monarchies, in which the sovereign is bound by laws and customs in the exercise of their powers. In the third monarchy, Eswatini, the sovereign rules without bounds, making it an absolute monarchy.
The Kingdom of Lesotho, an enclave of South Africa, was established in 1824 when Moshoeshoe I, a tribal chieftain, united warring tribes into the Basotho kingdom. The current monarchy in Lesotho is constitutional and elective.
Morocco is a constitutional monarchy, though the King maintains a fair amount of power. He is the chair of the Superior Council of the Ulema, charged with maintaining Moroccan Islam, as well as Morocco's Supreme Court. The King is also an active member of the cabinet, with the power to dismiss ministers and set the government agenda.
Eswatini, in the southeastern corner of Africa, originated as a confederation of African tribes. Chief Ngwane III of the Swazi people moved his tribe to their present location and united with other tribes in the mid-eighteenth century.
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The AU was launched in 2002
The African Union (AU) is a continental body consisting of 55 member states that make up the countries of the African continent. It was officially launched in 2002 as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), 1963-1999. The AU is an intergovernmental organisation that works on increasing cooperation, stability, and development within the continent of Africa.
The AU has several principal decision-making organs, including the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, the Executive Council, the Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC), and the Peace and Security Council. The AU also has judicial and legal bodies, such as the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR) and the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights (AfCHPR).
The AU is committed to promoting cooperation in all fields to raise the living standards of African peoples and to advance the development of the continent. It aims to defend the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence of its member states and to promote international cooperation within the framework of the United Nations Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The AU has the power to militarily intervene in member states in response to war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity, as outlined in Article 4(h) of the Constitutive Act. The AU has also established AU peacekeeping operations in Somalia and Darfur and imposed sanctions against persons undermining peace and security.
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It succeeded the Organisation of African Unity (OAU)
The African Union (AU) is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU). The OAU was an African intergovernmental organisation established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with 32 or 33 signatory governments.
The OAU was established to encourage political and economic integration among member states and to eradicate colonialism and neo-colonialism from the African continent. The organisation was also intended to form the continental base for pan-Africanism. The OAU played a pivotal role in eradicating colonialism and white minority rule in Africa, providing weapons, training, and military bases to rebel groups fighting colonial rule.
However, the OAU was criticised for its inability to take decisive action due to its non-interference policy in the affairs of member states. This limited its effectiveness, as it was powerless to stop human rights violations in countries like Uganda under Idi Amin in the 1970s. Recognising these limitations, the OAU issued the Sirte Declaration in September 1999, calling for the establishment of a new body to replace it.
On 9 July 2002, the OAU's Chairman, South African President Thabo Mbeki, formally dissolved the OAU and replaced it with the African Union (AU), which upholds many of the same goals and objectives. The AU consists of 55 member states, spanning the entirety of the African continent, with the exception of a few Spanish North African semi-enclaves.
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The AU has the power to intervene in member states in certain circumstances
The African Union (AU) is a continental body consisting of 55 member states that make up the countries of the African continent. The AU was officially launched in 2002 as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU, 1963-1999). The AU has several principal decision-making organs, including the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, the Executive Council, the Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC), the Peace and Security Council (PSC), and the African Union Commission.
The AU's first military intervention in a member state occurred in May 2003 when a peacekeeping force of soldiers from South Africa, Ethiopia, and Mozambique was deployed to Burundi to oversee the implementation of various agreements. The AU has also conducted peacekeeping missions in Sudan during the Darfur Conflict and in Somalia, deploying troops from Uganda and Burundi.
In addition to its military interventions, the AU has the power to intervene in member states through economic and diplomatic means. The PSC, for example, has the authority to impose sanctions on member states in cases of unconstitutional changes of government or other threats to international peace and security. The AU has also suspended member states from its organizational activities in response to coups, as seen in the case of Mauritania in 2005 and 2008.
The AU's right to intervene in member states is not without controversy. Some critics argue that AU peacekeepers are ineffective due to a lack of funds, personnel, and expertise. Additionally, the AU's purported right to unilateral humanitarian intervention within its member states has been questioned, as it stands in contrast to the collective security system established by the U.N. Charter, which prohibits states or regional organizations from using force in another country's territory without U.N. Security Council authorization.
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Frequently asked questions
There are 55 independent countries in the African Union.
The African Union (AU) is an intergovernmental organisation that works to increase cooperation, stability, and development within the African continent.
The African Union was launched in 2002 as a replacement for the Organisation of African Unity (OAU).
The 55 member states are grouped into five regions.
The total population of the AU as of 2013 was 1,068,444,000.
