 | |
| Proportion | 2:3 |
|---|---|
| Adopted | 31 January 2010 [1] |
| Design | A dark green map of the African continent, plus the Sinai Peninsula and offshore islands, on a white sun, surrounded by a circle of 55 5-pointed gold (yellow) stars, on a dark green field. |
| Designed by | Yadesa Bojia [2] |
The current flag of the African Union was adopted at its 14th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, which took place in Addis Ababa on 31 January 2010.
During the 8th African Union Summit which took place in Addis Ababa on 29 and 30 January 2007, the Heads of State and Government decided to launch a competition for the selection of a new flag for the Union. They prescribed a green background for the flag symbolising hope of Africa and stars to represent Member States.
Pursuant to this decision, the Muammar Gaddafi-led African Union Commission (AUC) organised a competition for the selection of a new flag for the African Union. The AUC received a total of 106 entries proposed by citizens of 19 African countries and two from the Diaspora. The proposals were then examined by a panel of experts put in place by the African Union Commission and selected from the five African regions for short listing according to the main directions given by the Heads of State and Government. The winning design was created by Yadesa Bojia, an Ethiopian-born American artist and graphic designer. [3] [2]
The flag contains a green background symbolizing the hope of Africa and 55 gold stars to represent the Member States. When first adopted, there were 53 stars. However, South Sudan became the 54th member state on 27 July 2011, [4] and Morocco rejoined in January 2017, [5] bringing the total to 55.
The previous flag of the African Union was used from 2004 to 2010 and was composed of a broad green horizontal stripe at the top followed by a narrow band of gold. Below is a broad white stripe bearing the then emblem of the African Union at its center followed by a narrow gold band and broad green stripe at the bottom.
The AU was formed in 2002, without an official flag. In 2003, a competition was announced for designing a new emblem and flag. However, the Assembly of the African Union decided at the Addis Ababa session of 2004 to retain the emblem and flag of its predecessor, the Organisation of African Unity, and adopt them as the new AU flag and emblem. That flag was used from 1970 to 2002 as the OAU's flag.
The color symbolism of the old flag is as follows:
The flag of Europe or European flag consists of twelve golden stars forming a circle on a blue field. It is the official flag of the European Union. It was designed and adopted in 1955 by the Council of Europe (CoE) as a symbol for the whole of Europe.
The Organisation of African Unity was an African intergovernmental organization established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with 33 signatory governments. Some of the key aims of the OAU were to encourage political and economic integration among member states, and to eradicate colonialism and neo-colonialism from the African continent.
The national flag of Burkina Faso is formed by two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green, with a yellow five-pointed star resting in the center. The flag was adopted on 4 August 1984. The flag uses the Pan-African colours of Ethiopia, reflecting both a break with the country's colonial past and its unity with other African ex-colonies. The red is also said to symbolize the revolution and the green the abundance of agricultural and natural riches. The yellow star placed over the red and green stripes represents the guiding light of the revolution. The flag was adopted following the coup of 1983 which brought Thomas Sankara to power.
The flag of the Central African Republic was officially adopted in 1958. It has been retained since that time with the same design, four horizontal stripes of blue, white, green and yellow, and a single vertical band of red, with a yellow five-pointed star in the upper left corner.
The national flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is a sky blue flag, adorned with a yellow star in the upper left canton and cut diagonally by a red stripe with a yellow fimbriation. It was adopted on 18 February 2006. A new constitution, ratified in December 2005 and which came into effect in February 2006, promoted a return to a flag similar to that flown between 1966 and 1971, with a change from a royal blue to sky blue background. Blue represents peace. Red stands for "the blood of the country's martyrs", yellow the country's wealth; and the star symbol the future for the country.
The flag of Equatorial Guinea was adopted on August 21, 1979. The six stars on the flag represent Equatorial Guinea's mainland and five islands. Under the rule of dictator Francisco Nguema the flag was modified and a different national emblem was used in it. After he was deposed the original flag was restored.
The national flag of Tajikistan was adopted in November 1992, replacing the flag of the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic of 1953. The flag features Iranian colors in a horizontal tricolor of red, white, and green, with a yellow crown surmounted by an arc of seven stars at the centre. It has a width ratio of 2:3:2. The tricolor preserves the choice of colors in the former Tajik Soviet flag, as well as the 1:2 proportions.
The national flag of Togo consists of five horizontal stripes, alternating between green and yellow, with a red square bearing a five-pointed white star in the canton. It is one of many African flags that use the pan-African colours of green, yellow, and red. Togolese artist Paul Ahyi designed the flag in 1960, just before its adoption on 27 April of that year, coinciding with Togo's proclamation of independence. When Togo was an autonomous republic within the French Union, it flew a green flag with the French tricolour in the canton and two five-pointed yellow stars, one in the lower hoist and one in the upper fly.
The national flag of Turkmenistan features a white crescent and five stars representing the five regions of the country and the Five Pillars of Islam. Placed upon a green field is a symbolic representation of the country's famous carpet industry. It was introduced as the flag of Turkmenistan on 27 September 1992 to replace the Soviet-era flag which consisted of a red background with two light blue bars in the middle. The modified version with a 2:3 ratio was adopted on 23 January 2001. State Flag and Constitution Day is celebrated on 18 May.
The flag of the Arab League comprises a green banner bearing the seal of the Arab League. The twenty-two links in the chain represent the twenty-two members of the League at the time of the flag's adoption. The script gives the name of the organization: "League of Arab States".
"Let Us All Unite and Celebrate Together" is the anthem of the African Union (AU). It was written as a poem titled "Proud to be African" by Ethiopian poet Tsegaye Gabre-Medhin, while the music was composed by Kenyan choral composer Arthur Mudogo Kemoli. It had served as the anthem of the former Organisation of African Unity since 1986 before being adopted by the newly formed Union in 2002.
The emblem of the African Union features a golden, boundary-less map of Africa inside two concentric circles, with stylised palm leaves shooting up on either side of the outer circle.
The Chairperson of the African Union Commission is the head of the African Union Commission.
Abkhazia is a region in the Caucasus that is under the effective control of the partially recognised self-declared Republic of Abkhazia. The de jure majority internationally recognized Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia claims to be its legitimate government.
The African Union (AU) is a continental union 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 African Union. The bloc was launched on 9 July 2002 in Durban, South Africa. The intention of the AU was to replace the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa by 32 signatory governments; the OAU was disbanded on 9 July 2002. The most important decisions of the AU are made by the Assembly of the African Union, a semi-annual meeting of the heads of state and government of its member states.
The African Union is a geo-political entity covering the entirety of the African continent. Its origin dates back to the First Congress of Independent African States, held in Accra, Ghana, from 15 to 22 April 1958. The conference aimed at forming the Africa Day to mark the liberation movement of the African people each year, such as to free themselves from foreign dictatorship and to unite Africa. The Organisation of African Unity (OAU), was subsequently established on 25 May 1963 followed by the African Economic Community in 1981. Critics argued that the OAU in particular did little to protect the rights and liberties of African citizens from their own political leaders, often dubbing it the "Dictators' Club".
The national flag of the People's Republic of China, also known as the Five-star Red Flag, is a Chinese red field with five golden stars charged at the canton. The design features one large star, with four smaller stars in an arc set off towards the fly. It has been the national flag of China since the foundation of the People's Republic of China on 1 October 1949. The flag was designed by Zeng Liansong.
The Chairperson of the African Union is the ceremonial head of the African Union (AU) elected by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government for a one-year term. It rotates among the continent's five regions.
The flag of Cagayan is the provincial flag of Cagayan, Philippines. It is a horizontal triband of blue, gold and green, charged with the provincial coat-of-arms ringed by 29 white, five-pointed stars. It was adopted on March 11, 1970 by the virtue of Provincial Board Resolution No. 319.
Ethiopia is one of founding African states of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) on 25 May 1963 under Emperor Haile Selassie, headquartered in Addis Ababa. At the time the organization evolved up to 54 African states, except Morocco.
| History | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geography | |||||||||||||||||||
| Organs |
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Politics |
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Economy | |||||||||||||||||||
| Culture | |||||||||||||||||||
| Theory | |||||||||||||||||||
| Intercontinental |  Arab League •  CIS •  Commonwealth of Nations •  Lusophone Community •  EEU •  NATO •  OIC •  OIF •  ICRC •  UN •  UNESCO |
|---|---|
| Europe | |
| Americas | |
| Africa | |
| Asia | |
| Oceania | |
| Former organizations | |
