A celebration of African Unity

Islamabad

Africa Day (formerly African Freedom Day and African Liberation Day), is the annual commemoration of the May 25, 1963 foundation of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) (now known as the African Union) which is celebrated in various countries on the African continent, as well as around the world. To celebrate the occasion in Islamabad Pakistan, the Dean of the African Group, High Commissioner of the Republic of South Africa, Mpendulo Jele and all the African Heads of Mission accredited to Pakistan, hosted a reception at the Serena Hotel. All the hosts received the guests and there was no guest of honour.  In his speech the Dean spoke about the aims and objectives of the AU as well as the success they had in various fields. 

The event was held at a hotel and was very well attended. A celebratory atmosphere had been created with a map of Africa as the backdrop to the stage painted with flags of all the countries of the AU and underlined with the flags of the eleven countries that are represented in Pakistan and have their missions here. Children of a school in Islamabad dressed in African costumes stood on the stage and were the subject of camera and selfie attention, as were the many diplomats who were dressed in their colourful national costumes. In one corner of the hall, members of the Nigerian embassy played lively music with traditional instruments, while their colleagues danced to the beat, with other guests attempting to match their expertise but not quite making it!

In addition to this all the host countries had put up stalls with a display of handicrafts; pictures of scenic sights and presented specialties of home cooked cuisine. On the whole a great, united effort had been made to make the reception as memorable as possible. That is what the AU is all about – unity!

The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of all 55 countries on the African continent. It was established on 26 May 2001 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and launched on 9 July 2002 in South Africa. Countries of the AU accredited to Pakistan are: Algeria; Egypt; Eritrea; Kenya; Libya; Mauritius; Nigeria; Somalia; South Africa; Sudan and Tunisia. Palestine has recently been added to the group as announced by the ambassador, who was also one of the hosts.

The AU was developed along the lines of the European Union with powers to promote and foster unity and solidarity between African countries, accelerating political and socio-economic integration and promoting peace, security, democracy and human rights in the continent.