African Union facts for kids

Quick facts for kids African Union Arabic الاتحاد الأفريقي Spanish Unión Africana French Union africaine Portuguese União Africana Swahili Umoja wa Afrika
Flag
Motto: "A United and Strong Africa"
Anthem: "Let Us All Unite and Celebrate Together"
Member states       Suspended states
Political centres	Addis Ababaa Johannesburgb
Largest urban agglomerations	Cairo Lagos
Official languages	Arabic English French Portuguese Spanish Swahili and any other African language
Demonym(s)	African
Type	Continental union
Membership	55 member states  Algeria  Angola  Benin  Botswana  Burkina Faso  Burundi  Cameroon  Cape Verde  Central African Republic  Chad  Comoros  Democratic Republic of the Congo  Djibouti  Egypt  Equatorial Guinea  Eritrea  Swaziland  Ethiopia  Gabon  Gambia  Ghana  Guinea  Guinea-Bissau  Côte d'Ivoire  Kenya  Lesotho  Liberia  Libya  Madagascar  Malawi  Mali  Mauritania  Mauritius  Morocco  Mozambique  Namibia  Niger  Nigeria  Republic of the Congo  Rwanda  Sahrawi Republic  São Tomé and Príncipe  Senegal  Seychelles  Sierra Leone  Somalia  South Africa  South Sudan  Sudan  Tanzania 10 observer states  Haiti  Israel  Kazakhstan  Latvia Mexico  Palestine  Serbia  Turkey  Ukraine  United Arab Emirates
Leaders
• Chairperson	João Lourenço
• Commission Chairperson	Moussa Faki
• Parliamentary President	Fortune Z. Charumbira
Legislature	Pan-African Parliament
Establishment
• OAU Charter	25 May 1963
• Abuja Treaty	3 June 1991
• Sirte Declaration	9 September 1999
• African Union founded	July 9, 2002; 23 years ago (2002-07-09)
• Admission of South Sudan	9 July 2011
• Admission of Morocco	31 January 2017
• African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)	1 January 2021
Area
• Total	29,922,059 km2 (11,552,972 sq mi)
Population
• 2024 estimate	1,494,988,668
GDP (PPP)	2024 estimate
• Total	$8.990 trillion
• Per capita	$6,330
GDP (nominal)	2024 estimate
• Total	$2.81 trillion
• Per capita	$1,960
HDI (2020)	0.577 medium
Internet TLD	.africa
a Seat of the African Union Commission. b Seat of the Pan-African Parliament.

The African Union (AU) is a group of 55 countries in Africa that work together. It's like a big team for the whole continent! The AU was first talked about in 1999 and officially started on July 9, 2002, in Durban, South Africa. It took over from an older group called the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which began in 1963.

The main office for the AU, called the African Union Commission, is in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The biggest city in the AU is Lagos, Nigeria, and the largest city area is Cairo, Egypt. The African Union is home to over 1.3 billion people and covers a huge area, including famous places like the Sahara Desert and the Nile River.

The main languages used by the AU are Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, and Swahili. Important decisions are made by the Assembly of the African Union, where leaders from all member countries meet twice a year.

In 2023, the African Union became a member of the G20, which is a group of the world's biggest economies. This shows how important Africa is on the global stage.

What the African Union Does

The African Union has many important goals. They want to make Africa a better place for everyone.

Here are some of their main goals:

• To bring African countries closer together and make them stronger.
• To protect the independence and borders of its member countries.
• To help the continent grow faster in politics and economy.
• To speak up for Africa's interests around the world.
• To work with other countries, following rules like the Charter of the United Nations.
• To keep peace and safety across Africa.
• To support fair elections and good leadership.
• To protect human rights for all people in Africa.
• To help Africa play a bigger role in the world economy.
• To promote sustainable development and improve living standards.
• To encourage cooperation in all areas of life.
• To help different regional groups in Africa work together.
• To boost research, especially in science and technology.
• To work with partners to fight diseases and improve health.

The AU has different groups that help it run. The top group is the Assembly of the African Union. This is where the presidents and prime ministers of all member countries meet. The AU also has a group of representatives called the Pan-African Parliament. It has 265 members chosen by the countries.

Other important groups include:

• The Executive Council of the African Union: This group is made up of foreign ministers. They get decisions ready for the Assembly.
• The Permanent Representatives' Committee of the African Union: This group includes ambassadors from AU countries in Addis Ababa.
• The Economic, Social, and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC): This group lets regular citizens and groups share their ideas.

The main office, the African Union Commission, is led by a Chairperson. This person helps manage the daily work of the AU.

The AU also has other offices in different countries. For example, the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights is in Banjul, the Gambia.

The AU has sent peacekeeping forces to help solve problems in some countries. For instance, they sent troops to Burundi in 2003 and to Sudan during the Darfur Conflict. They also have a peacekeeping mission in Somalia.

The AU has created important rules and agreements for the continent. These include rules about fighting corruption and promoting democracy.

African Union's Journey: A Brief History

The idea for the African Union started a long time ago. It began with the First Congress of Independent African States in Accra, Ghana, in 1958. This meeting aimed to celebrate Africa's freedom from colonial rule. Later, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) was formed in 1963 to unite Africa.

In the 1990s, leaders decided to create a stronger union. This led to the Sirte Declaration in 1999, which called for the African Union. The rules for the AU were agreed upon in 2000, and the plan for how it would work was set in 2001.

The African Union officially began in Durban on July 9, 2002. Its first leader was Thabo Mbeki, who was then the head of South Africa.

Since 2010, the African Union has been thinking about creating its own African space agency.

In 2015, Barack Obama was the first US president to speak at the African Union in Addis Ababa. He encouraged more trade and investment in Africa. He also praised progress in education and economy. He spoke about the importance of democracy and fighting corruption.

African Union's Geography

Regions of the African Union:
 Northern Region (Sahara) 
 Southern Region (Kalahari) 
 Eastern Region (Nile) 
 Western Regions A and B (Niger and Volta Niger) 
 Central Region (Congo) 

The countries in the African Union cover almost all of the African continent. This includes a huge variety of landscapes. You can find the world's largest hot desert, the Sahara. There are also vast jungles, wide savannas, and the world's longest river, the Nile.

The AU covers an area of nearly 30 million square kilometers (about 11.5 million square miles). It has a coastline of about 24,000 kilometers (15,000 miles). Most of this land is on the main continent. Important islands like Madagascar are also part of the AU.

People and Languages of the AU

Population Growth

In 2017, the total population of the African Union was over 1.25 billion people. This number is growing quickly, by more than 2.5% each year.

Languages Spoken

Map showing the traditional language families represented in Africa (1996)

The African Union has several official languages. These include Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, and Swahili. Any other African language can also be used. English and French are the main working languages.

The AU wants to use more African languages in its work. In 2001, the African Academy of Languages was created to help promote and keep African languages alive. In 2006, the AU even declared it the "Year of African Languages."

African Union Member States

All countries in Africa and on African islands that are part of the United Nations are members of the AU. This also includes the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. Morocco rejoined the AU in 2017 after leaving the older OAU in 1984.

Sometimes, a country's membership in the AU can be paused. This happens if there are big political changes, like a military takeover. For example, Mali, Guinea, Sudan, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Gabon have had their memberships suspended at different times due to such events.

Current Members

Observer States

These countries are not full members but can attend some meetings and take part in some activities:

•  Haiti
•  Israel (suspended as of February 2023)
•  Kazakhstan
•  Latvia
• Mexico
•  Palestine
•  Serbia
•  Turkey
•  Ukraine
•  United Arab Emirates

How the African Union is Governed

The African Union has several important financial institutions it plans to set up. These include an African Central Bank, an African Investment Bank, and an African Monetary Fund. The long-term goal is to have a single currency for Africa, called the Afro.

Working Towards a United Africa

A big discussion within the AU is about creating a "Union Government." Some countries want a strong, unified government for all of Africa, with a shared army. Others prefer to strengthen the current system and improve how the AU works.

Leaders have agreed to study how to make the African continent more integrated. They want to speed up economic and political unity. This includes looking at how the AU works with smaller regional groups. They also want to involve African people, including those living outside Africa, in this process.

Regional Economic Communities

The AU believes that working together in smaller regions is a good way to achieve unity. There are eight main Regional Economic Communities (RECs) recognized by the AU. These groups help countries in specific parts of Africa cooperate.

These RECs are:

• the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU)
• the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA)
• the Community of Sahel-Saharan States (CEN-SAD)
• the East African Community (EAC)
• the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS)
• the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)
• the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD)
• the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC)

Many countries belong to more than one of these regional groups. The AU is working to make sure these groups work well together and help achieve the larger goal of African unity.

Main Headquarters

The main office of the African Union is in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This is where the African Union Commission is located. A new headquarters building, called the AU Conference Center and Office Complex (AUCC), opened in 2012.

This impressive building was a gift from the Chinese government. It has a large meeting hall and a 20-story office tower. The tower is 99.9 meters tall. This height represents September 9, 1999, the date when the decision to create the African Union was made.

African Union Culture and Symbols

Symbols of Unity

Emblem of the African Union

The emblem of the African Union has a gold ribbon with red rings. Palm leaves surround a gold circle, which has a green inner circle. Inside the green circle is a gold map of Africa.

• The red rings show African unity and the sacrifices made for freedom.
• The palm leaves stand for peace.
• The gold represents Africa's wealth and bright future.
• The green shows African hopes and dreams.
• The map of Africa has no borders to symbolize unity.

The African Union adopted its current flag in 2010. It has a green background, which means hope for Africa. Stars on the flag represent each member state.

Before this, the AU had an older flag. It had broad green stripes, narrow gold bands, and the AU emblem on a white stripe. The green and gold still symbolized Africa's hopes, wealth, and future. The white represented Africa's desire for friendship worldwide. These colors (green, gold, and sometimes red) are often called the Pan-African colours and appear in many African flags.

The official anthem of the African Union is "Let Us All Unite and Celebrate Together".

African Union Celebrations

Africa Day is celebrated every year on May 25. This day remembers the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) in 1963.

Other celebrations across Africa include:

• The Fez Festival of World Sacred Music: A week-long event in Morocco for cultural harmony with music, dance, and art.
• The Knysna Oyster festival: Held in Knysna, South Africa, focusing on sports, food, and oysters.
• Lake of Stars Festival: A three-day music festival in Lake Malawi, featuring African music.
• Fête du Vodoun: Also known as the Ouidah Voodoo Festival in Benin, with rituals, horse races, and drum performances.
• Umhlanga (ceremony): A traditional ceremony for young women in Eswatini, with public traditions on certain days.
• African Border Day: Celebrated annually on June 7 to promote peace and cooperation between African countries.
• Marsabit Lake Turkana Cultural Festival: Held in Kenya, celebrating harmony among tribes with culture, singing, and traditional costumes.
• Enkutatash: The Ethiopian New Year, celebrated on September 11 (or September 12 in a leap year).

See Also

In Spanish: Unión Africana para niños