African Union

=== Governance ===
The principal topic for debate at the July 2007 AU summit held in [[Accra]], Ghana, was the creation of a Union Government,<ref>Decision on the Report of the 9th Extraordinary session of the executive council on the proposals for the Union Government, DOC.Assembly/AU/10 (VIII), Assembly/AU/Dec.156 (VIII).</ref> with the aim of moving towards a [[United States of Africa]]. A study on the [[Union Government of Africa|Union Government]] was adopted in late 2006,<ref>Study on an African Union Government: Towards a United States of Africa, 2006. See also, Decision on the Union Government, Doc. Assembly/AU/2(VII).</ref> and proposes various options for "completing" the African Union project. There are divisions among African states on the proposals, with some (notably [[Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya|Libya]]) following a maximalist view leading to a common government with an AU army; and others (especially the southern African states) supporting rather a strengthening of the existing structures, with some reforms to deal with administrative and political challenges in making the AU Commission and other bodies truly effective.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.pambazuka.org/aumonitor/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070608200746/http://www.pambazuka.org/aumonitor/|url-status=dead|title=Pambazuka.org|archive-date=8 June 2007}}</ref>

Following a heated debate in Accra, the [[Assembly of the African Union|Assembly of Heads of State and Government]] agreed in the form of a declaration to review the state of affairs of the AU with a view to determining its readiness towards a Union Government.<ref>Accra Declaration, Assembly of the Union at its 9th Ordinary session in Accra, Ghana, 1–3 July 2007.</ref> In particular, the Assembly agreed to:
* Accelerate the economic and political integration of the African continent, including the formation of a [[Union Government of Africa]];
* Conduct an audit of the institutions and organs of the AU; review the relationship between the AU and the RECs; find ways to strengthen the AU and elaborate a timeframe to establish a Union Government of Africa.

The declaration lastly noted the "importance of involving the African peoples, including [[Regions of the African Union#African diaspora|Africans in the Diaspora]], in the processes leading to the formation of the Union Government."

Following this decision, a panel of eminent persons was set up to conduct the "audit review". The review team began its work on 1 September 2007. The review was presented to the Assembly of Heads of State and Government at the January 2008 summit in Addis Ababa. No final decision was taken on the recommendations, however, and a committee of ten heads of state was appointed to consider the review and report back to the July 2008 summit to be held in Egypt.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.africa-union.org/root/au/Conferences/2008/january/summit/docs/decisions/Assembly.Dec_171%20-%20192%20_X_%20-%20Addis_February_2008.pdf |title=Decision on the Report of the Executive Council on the Audit of the Union and the Report of the Ministerial Committee on the Union Government, Doc. Assembly/Au/8(X) |access-date=26 November 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120222043847/http://www.africa-union.org/root/au/Conferences/2008/january/summit/docs/decisions/Assembly.Dec_171%20-%20192%20_X_%20-%20Addis_February_2008.pdf |archive-date=22 February 2012}}</ref> At the July 2008 summit, a decision was once again deferred, for a "final" debate at the January 2009 summit to be held in Addis Ababa.

==== Role of African Union ====
{{Supranational African Bodies|align=right|size=500px}}
One of the key debates in relation to the achievement of greater continental integration is the relative priority that should be given to integration of the continent as a unit in itself or to integration of the sub-regions. The 1980 [[Lagos Plan of Action for the Development of Africa]] and the 1991 treaty to establish the African Economic Community (also referred to as the Abuja Treaty), proposed the creation of [[Regional Economic Communities]] (RECs) as the basis for African integration, with a timetable for regional and then continental integration to follow.<ref>See note on [https://web.archive.org/web/20040906140832/http://www.dfa.gov.za/docs/2003/au0815.htm The Role of the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) as the Building Blocks of the African Union] prepared by the South African Department of Foreign Affairs.</ref>

Currently, there are eight RECs recognised by the AU, each established under a separate regional treaty. They are:
* the [[Arab Maghreb Union]] (AMU)
* the [[Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa]] (COMESA)
* the [[Community of Sahel-Saharan States]] (CEN-SAD)
* the [[East African Community]] (EAC)
* the [[Economic Community of Central African States]] (ECCAS)
* the [[Economic Community of West African States]] (ECOWAS)
* the [[Intergovernmental Authority on Development]] (IGAD)
* the [[Southern Africa Development Community]] (SADC)

The membership of many of the communities overlaps, and their rationalisation has been under discussion for several years—and formed the theme of the 2006 Banjul summit. At the July 2007 Accra summit the Assembly finally decided to adopt a Protocol on Relations between the African Union and the Regional Economic Communities.<ref>Decision on the Protocol on Relations between the African Union and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs), Assembly/AU/Dec.166 (IX).</ref> This protocol is intended to facilitate the harmonisation of policies and ensure compliance with the Abuja Treaty and Lagos Plan of Action time frames.