Member states of the African Union

Common card · No. 420996

The member states of the African Union are the 55 sovereign states that have ratified or acceded to the Constitutive Act of the African Union to become member states to the African Union (AU). The AU was the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), and AU membership was open to all OAU member states. From an original membership of 36 states when the OAU was established on 25 May 1963, there have been nineteen successive enlargements—the largest occurring on 18 July 1975 when four states joined. Morocco is the newest member state, having joined on 31 January 2017. Morocco was a founding member of the OAU but withdrew in 1984 following the organization's acceptance of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic as a member state, which claims the sovereignty of the disputed territory of Western Sahara with Morocco. The AU spans the entirety of the African continent, with the exception of the Spanish North Africa semi-enclaves of Ceuta, Melilla, and Vélez de la Gomera. Island states...

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