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The anthem was written as a poem titled "Proud to be African" by Ethiopian poet Tsegaye Gabre-Medhin. Kenyan choral composer Arthur Mudogo Kemoli composed the anthem's music in Dakar, Senegal in 1986,[1] and it was selected as the anthem of the AU's predecessor, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), as part of a contest.[2][3] The same year,[a] the OAU honoured Tsegaye with the OAU African Unity Anthem Prize for writing the anthem.[6]

After the AU's formation in 2002, it organised a contest to establish official symbols of the Union, including a flag, emblem and anthem. The competition's brief for the anthem included that its short form for official ceremonies (first stanzas or two verses and chorus) should not exceed one minute in length and that each entry should include lyrics, sheet music, a good recording and an explanatory note and be submitted in one of the working languages of the AU. The brief stated that the symbols should draw inspiration from a number of values including struggle, independence, labour, unity, justice and hope. The competition was to last until 25 April 2003, and the three best entries were to be presented and the symbols chosen at a session of the AU Assembly in Maputo, Mozambique, in July 2003, with the first-, second- and third-place winners receiving US$7,000, US$5,000 and US$3,000 cash prizes, respectively.[7][8]

The competition did not attract many participants,[7] and eventually the competition was abandoned and symbols adopted and/or formalised irrespective of it,[9] including the OAU anthem, which was retained as the anthem of the new AU.[2][10][11]

During the 8th African Union Summit which took place in Addis Ababa on 29 and 30 January 2007, the Heads of State and Government decided to launch a competition for the selection of a new flag for the Union. They prescribed a green background for the flag symbolising hope of Africa and stars to represent Member States.

Pursuant to this decision, the Muammar Gaddafi-led African Union Commission (AUC) organised a competition for the selection of a new flag for the African Union. The AUC received a total of 106 entries proposed by citizens of 19 African countries and two from the Diaspora. The proposals were then examined by a panel of experts put in place by the African Union Commission and selected from the five African regions for short listing according to the main directions given by the Heads of State and Government. The winning design was created by Yadesa Bojia, an Ethiopian-born American artist and graphic designer.[3][2]

The flag contains a green background symbolizing the hope of Africa and 53 gold stars to represent the Member States. However, South Sudan became the 54th member state on 27 July 2011, and Morocco rejoined in January 2017,[4] bringing the total to 55.

On May 25, 1963 the Organization for African Unity (OAU) was established with a permanent headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Haile Selassie, Emperor of Ethiopia, was selected as the first President of the OAU. His acceptance speech appears below.

DefendTheTruth wrote: ↑

30 Jan 2022, 15:02

And the first President of the Continental body, the predecessor of today's AU, The Organisation of African Unity (OAU), who was an Ethiopian, making Ethiopia part of the momentous history.

On May 25, 1963 the Organization for African Unity (OAU) was established with a permanent headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Haile Selassie, Emperor of Ethiopia, was selected as the first President of the OAU. His acceptance speech appears below.

https://www.blackpast.org/wp-content/up ... lassie.jpg