ʼn Evaluasie van die Afrika-Unie as internasionale organisasie

Abstract

The half centenary of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) and the first decade of the African Union (AU) were celebrated during 2013. The OAU was established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, with the aim to promote unity among African countries and to improve the fate of their peoples. On 9 July 2002, it was transformed into the African Union in Durban. The main objectives of the latter are the economic and political integration of the African continent. This study aims to evaluate the successes and failures of the African Union as an international organisation (IO). Africa is one of the poorest and least developed regions in the world. This debate is therefore of critical importance to the people of the Southern African region (World Bank 2013). This evaluation provides a broad overview and focus on the major challenges that the AU is facing. In this study, the AU is assessed using the theoretical criteria set by the theory of international organisations. The results revealed that the AU is only partially successful and that internal divisions remain a barrier.