African Union
Updated 7 November 2026
The continental union of African states, successor to the OAU. Runs peace operations, aspires to continental free trade through AfCFTA, and suspends members after coups.
Key facts
- Founded
- 2002
- Headquarters
- Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- Members
- 48 states
- Chair
- Burundi
- Commission Chairperson
- Mahmoud Ali Youssouf
- Last summit
- 14 February 2026Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- The UAE
- Not a member
- UAE trade with members (2025)
- $83.1 billion
Member states
- Algeria
- Angola
- Benin
- Botswana
- Burundi
- Cameroon
- Cape Verde
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- Comoros
- Congo
- DR Congo
- Ivory Coast
- Djibouti
- Egypt
- Equatorial Guinea
- Eritrea
- Eswatini
- Ethiopia
- Gambia
- Ghana
- Kenya
- Lesotho
- Liberia
- Libya
- Malawi
- Mauritania
- Mauritius
- Morocco
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- Nigeria
- Rwanda
- São Tomé and Príncipe
- Senegal
- Seychelles
- Sierra Leone
- Somalia
- South Africa
- South Sudan
- Tanzania
- Togo
- Tunisia
- Uganda
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
- Guinea
- Gabon