The Group of African States, or African Group, is one of the five
United Nations regional groups
The United Nations Regional Groups are the geopolitical regional groups of member states of the United Nations. Originally, the UN member states were unofficially organized into five groups as an informal means of sharing the distribution of post ...
and is composed of 54 Member States from the
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
n continent. The African Group is the largest regional group, and compose 28% of all United Nations members.
The Group, as with all the regional groups, is a non-binding dialogue group where subjects concerning regional and international matters are discussed. Additionally, the Group works to help allocates seats on United Nations bodies by nominating candidates from the region.
Role
The Group, as with all the regional groups, plays a major role in promoting the region's interests. It provides a forum for Member States to exchange opinions on international issues, carry out follow-up on the topics that are being discussed in international organisations, build common positions on complex issues and prepare statements reflecting the joint position of the Group.
However, most importantly, the Group allows for the discussion and coordination of support for candidates for different United Nations organisations from the region.
Member States
The following are the Member States of the African Group:
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Representation
Security Council
The African Group currently holds three seats on the
Security Council
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...
, all non-permanent. The current members of the Security Council from the Group are:
Economic and Social Council
The African Group currently holds 14 seats on the
United Nations Economic and Social Council
The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC; french: links=no, Conseil économique et social des Nations unies, ) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields ...
. The current members of the Economic and Social Council from the Group are:
Human Rights Council
The African Group currently holds 13 seats on the
United Nations Human Rights Council
The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), CDH is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis. ...
. The current members of the Human Rights Council from the Group are:
Presidency of the General Assembly
Every five years in the years ending in 4 and 9, the African Group is eligible to elect a president to the General Assembly.
The following is a list of presidents from the Group since its official creation in 1963:
References
{{UNFCCC negotiating groups, state=collapsed
United Nations coalitions and unofficial groups