CHRONOLOGY-Steps in the path of Pan-African integration
01 Jul 2007 16:51:56 GMT Source: Reuters
July 1 (Reuters) - Leaders of the 53 nations of the African Union met on Sunday to discuss a plan to create a government of a United States of Africa. Following are some steps in the continent's efforts to achieve Pan-African integration: * 1924 - A Jamaican-born Pan-African activist, Marcus Garvey, is credited with first using the term "United States of Africa". * 1957 - Ghana, formerly the British-governed Gold Coast, becomes the first black state in sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence from colonial rule. * 1958 - Ghana's first president, Kwame Nkrumah, organises a Conference of Independent African states, eight at that stage. * 1960 - A second Conference of Independent African States, numbering 15, is held in Addis Ababa. * 1963 - Thirty-two African heads of state or government meet in Addis Ababa and launch the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), the precursor to the African Union (AU). * 1991 - Treaty of Abuja is signed, setting up the African Economic Community. * 2002 - The OAU is reorganised and relaunched as the African Union (AU). * 2004 - Pan-African Parliament is established. * 2006 - AU-commissioned study entitled "An African Union Government: Towards the United States of Africa" envisages three phases that would culminate in the formation of a continental government by 2015. * July 1-3 2007 - AU summit meets in Accra, Ghana to debate the plan for an African union government.
