The Assembly of the African Union, which is formally known as the African Union Assembly of Heads of State and Government (AU-AHSG), is one of several decision-making bodies within the African Union. The other bodies are the Pan-African Parliament; the Executive Council, consisting of foreign ministers of the AU members states; and the African Union Commission. The Chairperson of the Assembly has few formal functions, the most important of which is to preside at the Pan-African Parliament during the election and swearing in of the President of the Pan-African Parliament.
History of the Assembly
The Assembly came into existence on 25 May 1963, as part of the ratification of Organization of African Unity (OAU). Initially the Assembly consisted of 32 independent members, the heads of state of the African states that had achieved independence by 1963. Until 2001, the governing constitution of the Assembly was the OAU Charter. The Assembly is now subject to the Union Act that created the African Union.
Functions of the Assembly
The Assembly has nine basic functions:
- Set policies of the Union.
- Decide on what action to take after consideration of reports and recommendations from the other organs of the Union.
- Consider membership requests into the Union.
- Create bodies for the Union.
- Monitor the implementation of policies and decisions of the Union as well ensure compliance by all Member States.
- Create a budget of the Union.
- Provide direction to the Executive Council on conflicts, war and other emergency situations and the restoration of peace.
- Select judges for and withdraw judges of the Court of Justice.
- Appoint the Chairman of the Commission, Commissioners of the Commission, all respective deputies and determine how long they will serve and what duties they will perform.
Decisions of the Assembly
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The Assembly shall take its decisions by consensus or, failing which, by a two-thirds majority of the Member States of the Union. However, procedural matters, including the question of whether a matter is one of procedure or not, shall be decided by a simple majority.
Two-thirds of the total membership of the Union shall form a quorum at any meeting of the Assembly.
The Assembly may delegate any of its powers and functions to any organ of the Union.
Members of the Assembly
The AU Assembly of the Heads of State and Government consists of the 54 heads of state and government of the member countries. The Assembly meets once a year at the AU Summit. The current Chairman of the Assembly is President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa.
The current members of the AU-AHSG are:
| Member State | Representative | Title | Member since | Photo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Algeria | Abdelkader Bensalah | Acting Head of State | 2 April 2019 | _(cropped)_Version_2.jpg')) |
 Angola | João Lourenço | President | 26 September 2017 | ) |
 Benin | Patrice Talon | President | 6 April 2016 | ) |
 Botswana | Mokgweetsi Masisi | President | 1 April 2018 | _(cropped_Version_2).jpg')) |
 Burkina Faso | Roch Marc Christian Kaboré | President | 6 December 2015 | ) |
 Burundi | Évariste Ndayishimiye | President | 18 June 2020 | .jpg')) |
 Cabo Verde | Jorge Carlos Fonseca | President | 9 September 2011 | ) |
 Cameroon | Paul Biya | President | 6 November 1982 | ) |
 Central African Republic | Faustin-Archange Touadéra | President | 30 February 2016 | ) |
 Chad | Idriss Déby | President | 2 August 1990 | ) |
 Comoros | Azali Assoumani | President | 26 May 2016 | ) |
 Democratic Republic of the Congo | Félix Tshisekedi | President | 24 January 2019 | .jpg')) |
 Republic of the Congo | Denis Sassou Nguesso | President | 25 August 1997 | ) |
 Côte d'Ivoire | Alassane Ouattara | President | 4 December 2010 | _(cropped).jpg')) |
 Djibouti | Ismail Omar Guelleh | President | 8 May 1999 | ) |
 Egypt | Abdel Fattah el-Sisi | President | 8 June 2014 | ) |
 Equatorial Guinea | Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo | President | 3 August 1979 | ) |
 Eritrea | Isaias Afewerki | President | 24 May 1993 | ) |
 Eswatini | Mswati III | King | 25 April 1986 | ) |
 Ethiopia | Abiy Ahmed | Prime Minister | 2 April 2018 | ) |
 Gabon | Ali Bongo Ondimba | President | 19 October 2009 | .jpg')) |
 The Gambia | Adama Barrow | President | 19 January 2017 | _(cropped).jpg')) |
 Ghana | Nana Akuffo-Addo | President | 7 January 2017 | ) |
 Guinea | Alpha Condé | President | 21 December 2010 | ) |
 Guinea-Bissau | José Mário Vaz | President | 23 June 2014 | ) |
 Kenya | Uhuru Kenyatta | President | 9 April 2013 | ) |
 Lesotho | Tom Thabane | Prime Minister | 16 June 2017 | ) |
 Liberia | George Weah | President | 22 January 2018 | .jpg')) |
 Libya | Fayez al-Sarraj | Chairman of the Presidential Council | 30 March 2016 | _(cropped).jpg')) |
 Madagascar | Andry Rajoelina | President | 19 January 2019 | ) |
 Malawi | Peter Mutharika | President | 31 May 2014 | .jpg')) |
 Mali | Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta | President | 4 September 2013 | .jpg')) |
 Mauritania | Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz | President | 5 August 2009 | .jpg')) |
 Mauritius | Pravind Jugnauth | Prime Minister | 23 January 2017 | ) |
 Mozambique | Filipe Nyusi | President | 15 January 2015 | _(cropped).jpg')) |
 Namibia | Hage Geingob | President | 21 March 2015 | ) |
 Niger | Mahamadou Issoufou | President | 7 April 2011 | .jpg')) |
 Nigeria | Muhammadu Buhari | President | 29 May 2015 | ) |
 Rwanda | Paul Kagame | President | 24 March 2000 | ) |
 Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic | Brahim Ghali | President | 12 July 2016 | ) |
 São Tomé and Príncipe | Evaristo Carvalho | President | 3 September 2016 | ) |
 Senegal | Macky Sall | President | 2 April 2012 | .jpg')) |
 Seychelles | Danny Faure | President | 16 October 2016 | ) |
 Sierra Leone | Julius Maada Bio | President | 4 April 2018 | .jpg')) |
 Somalia | Hassan Ali Khaire | Prime Minister | 16 February 2017 | ) |
 South Africa | Cyril Ramaphosa | President | 15 February 2018 | ) |
 South Sudan | Salva Kiir Mayardit | President | 9 July 2011 | .jpg')) |
 Sudan | Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman Burhan | Chairman of the Transitional Military Council | 12 April 2019 | .jpg')) |
 Tanzania | John Magufuli | President | 5 November 2015 | ) |
 Togo | Faure Gnassingbé | President | 4 May 2005 | ) |
 Tunisia | Beji Caid Essebsi | President | 31 December 2014 | ) |
 Uganda | Yoweri Museveni | President | 26 January 1986 | ) |
 Zambia | Edgar Lungu | President | 25 January 2015 | ) |
 Zimbabwe | Emmerson Mnangagwa | President | 24 November 2017 | .jpg')) |
See also
- European Council, the European Union equivalent.
External links
- Assembly of the African Union Official Site