Level 7 of 10: Regional blocs and supranational bodies

African Union (AU)

The African Union is a continental body of 55 member states covering every country in Africa, launched in 2002 as successor to the Organisation of African Unity. The AU says its Assembly of Heads of State and Government is its supreme policy and decision-making organ, the 15-member Peace and Security Council is its standing body for preventing and resolving conflicts, and the African Union Commission in Addis Ababa runs day-to-day business.

Who leads it

• Chairperson of the African Union Commission: Mahmoud Ali Youssouf (au.int)
• Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission: Selma Malika Haddadi (au.int)

The UK and the AU

The UK is not a member: the AU says its 55 member states are the countries of the African continent.

Key figures

What it decides

• The Assembly of Heads of State and Government determines AU policies, sets priorities, adopts the annual programme and monitors implementation (Constitutive Act, Articles 6 to 9).
• The Assembly elects the Commission Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson; the Executive Council elects the six Commissioners.
• The Peace and Security Council can recommend to the Assembly intervention in a member state in grave circumstances, namely war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity, under Article 4(h) of the Constitutive Act.
• The Assembly delegated its powers on peace and security to the Peace and Security Council when it became operational in 2004.
• The Commission represents the AU and drafts common positions for international negotiations, under the Assembly's and Executive Council's mandate.

Records you can check

• AU member state profiles
  Each member, its region and the date it joined the AU or OAU
• Constitutive Act of the African Union
  The AU's founding treaty, with signature and ratification status
• AU organs
  The AU's decision-making bodies and their roles

Common questions

How many countries are in the African Union?

55. The AU says its 55 member states are all the countries on the African continent.

Who leads the African Union Commission?

Mahmoud Ali Youssouf is Chairperson of the AU Commission, according to the AU; Selma Malika Haddadi is Deputy Chairperson.

What is the AU budget?

The AU Commission's Deputy Chairperson put the proposed 2026 budget at US$814 million in May 2025, a 34% increase on 2025.

When was the African Union founded?

The AU says it was launched in July 2002 in Durban, South Africa, succeeding the Organisation of African Unity founded in 1963.

What does the AU Peace and Security Council do?

The AU describes it as its standing decision-making body for preventing, managing and resolving conflicts. It has 15 members with equal votes and no permanent members.

Other bodies at level 7

• Association of Southeast Asian Nations
• Council of Europe and the European Court of Human Rights
• European Central Bank
• European Court of Human Rights
• European Union (incl. Parliament, Commission, Council)
• Gulf Cooperation Council
• Mercosur
• Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

Sources

• Member States | African Union, read 16 October 2026
• About the African Union, read 20 October 2026
• The Commission | African Union, read 20 October 2026
• The Assembly | African Union, read 20 October 2026
• Peace and Security Council | African Union, read 20 October 2026
• AUC Chairperson received Letters of Credence of Ambassador of Sri Lanka, read 20 October 2026
• Remarks by the AUC Deputy Chairperson on the 2026 budget, read 20 October 2026
• Constitutive Act of the African Union, read 20 October 2026
• AU Organs, read 20 October 2026