The

member states A member state is a state that is a member of an international organization or of a federation or confederation. Since the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) include some members that are not sovereign states ...

of the

African Union The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. The AU was announced in the Sirte Declaration in Sirte, Libya, on 9 September 1999, calling for the establishment of the Africa ...

(AU) are divided into five geographic regions of the African Union. The

African diaspora The African diaspora is the worldwide collection of communities descended from native Africans or people from Africa, predominantly in the Americas. The term most commonly refers to the descendants of the West and Central Africans who were e ...

, which includes people of African descent living outside of the African continent, such as the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, Asia, and Europe, has been officially recognized by the AU as its sixth region.

List (In alphabetical order)

North

South

East

West

Central

African diaspora

In the Constitutive Act of the African Union, under amended Article 3(q) of the Act (Objectives), the following is stated regarding the

: “invite and encourage the full participation of the African Diaspora as an important part of our continent, in building the African Union.” Additionally, the African Union provides definition for its concept of the African diaspora as the following: “The African Diaspora consists of peoples of

African African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...

origin living outside the continent, irrespective of their citizenship and nationality and who are willing to contribute to the development of the continent and the building of the African Union.” In 2016, the

denied membership to

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

due to membership admission, as per Article 29.1 of the Constitutive Act of the African Union, being limited to any “African State.” In the African Union Handbook (2021), persons who have been appointed to represent the African diaspora at the

Assembly of the African Union 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 Parlia ...

have been granted the status of observer. More specifically, the African Union Handbook (2021) states:

In January 2008, the Executive Council suggested that the African diaspora be treated as Africa’s sixth region and its participation in the AU’s organs and activities be strengthened (EX.CL/Dec.406(XII)). The Assembly has recognised the diaspora as a substantive entity contributing to the economic and social development of the continent and has invited its representatives as observers to Assembly sessions (see Assembly/AU/Res.1(XVIII) of January 2012).

The African Union has also established regional institutions, such as the Western Hemisphere African Diaspora Network, and international institutions, such as the

Economic, Social and Cultural Council The Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC) is an advisory body of the African Union designed to give civil society organizations (CSOs) a voice within the AU institutions and decision-making processes. ECOSOCC is made up of civil societ ...

, to facilitate African diaspora relations. Additionally, the African Union works together with AfricaRecruit, the

Caribbean Community and Common Market The Caribbean Community (CARICOM or CC) is an intergovernmental organization that is a political and economic union of 15 member states (14 nation-states and one dependency) throughout the Caribbean. They have primary objectives to promote econom ...

, the

Commonwealth Business Council The Commonwealth Business Council (CBC) was an institution of the Commonwealth Family that aimed to use the global network of the Commonwealth of Nations more effectively for the promotion of global trade and investment for shared prosperity. ...

, the International Organization for Migration, and the World Bank to facilitate African diaspora relations, regionally and internationally. Furthermore, individual countries (e.g., Ghana, Ethiopia, Nigeria, South Africa) in Africa have also undertaken national efforts to facilitate African diaspora relations, internationally.

References

{{African Union African Union