This Handbook is published by the African Union (AU) Commission in partnership with the

New Zealand Government, publisher of the annualUnited Nations Handbook for more than

50years. Modelled on the United Nations Handbook , it is intended as a ready reference

guide for people working in all parts of the AU system (Member States, government officials, Commission and other staff) as well as the AU’s many partners and wider civil society.

The book has at its heart information about the principal organs established by the AU

Constitutive Act and subsequent protocols: the Assembly, Executive Council, Peace and

Security Council, Pan-African Parliament, Justice and Financial Institutions, Permanent

Representatives Committee and AU Commission. It also contains information about subsidiary and related organs and programmes as well as regional and other arrangements, such as the  Regional Economic Communities, which are the pillars of the AU and work closely with itsinstitutions.

Non-governmental organisations, inter-governmental organisations and political groups arenot included except where they have a formal agreement with the AU.

The Handbook focuses on the AU’s current structures and organs, including those in the

process of becoming operational. As many of the AU structures and organs are directly

inherited from its predecessor, the Organization of African Unity (OAU), key details about

the original OAU structures and transition to the AU are included where possible.