United Nations Office to the African Union (UNOAU)

UNOAU Mandate and History Since the transformation of the Organization of African Unity into the African Union (AU) in 2002, and in particular the 2004 launching of the AUs peace and security architecture, there has been strong support among the United Nations (UN) and its Member States for close cooperation with the AU. In 2005, the World Summit underscored the need to devote attention to the special needs of Africa. In follow-up to this Summit, Secretary-General Kofi Annan in the 2006 Addis Ababa Declaration Enhancing UN-AU Cooperation: Framework for the Ten-Year Capacity-Building Programme for the African Union, pledged the UNs support for the development and strengthening of the AU Commission, focusing with priority, on conflict prevention, mediation and good offices, peacekeeping and peacebuilding. In 2007 the General Assembly adopted resolution 61/296 on cooperation between the UN and the AU and requested the Secretary-General to take appropriate steps to strengthen the ...