Treaty Establishing the African
Economic Community
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREAMBLE
Chapter I Definitions
Chapter II Establishment, Principles Objectives,
General Undertakings and Modalities
Chapter III Organs of the Community
Chapter IV Regional Economic Communities
Chapter V Customs Union and Liberalisation of Trade
Chapter VI Free Movement of Persons, Rights of Residence
and Establishment
Chapter VII Money, Finance and Payments
Chapter VIII Food and Agriculture
Chapter IX Industry, Science, Technology, Survey,
National Resources and Environment
Chapter X Transport, Communications and Tourism
Chapter XI Standardisation and Measurement Systems
Chapter XII Education, Training and Culture
Chapter XIII Human Resources, Social Affairs, Health
and Population
Chapter XIV Co-operation in Other Matters
Chapter XV Special Provisions in respect of certain
countries
Chapter XVI Solidarity, Development and Compensation
Fund
Chapter XVII Financial Provisions
Chapter XVIII Settlement of Disputes
Chapter XIX Relations between the Community and
Regional Economic Communities, Regional, Continental
Organisations and Other Socio-Economic Organisations
and Associations
Chapter XX Relations between the Community, Third
States and International Organisations
Chapter XXI Relations between Member States, Third
States, Regional and Sub-Regional Organisations
and International Organisations
Chapter XXII Miscellaneous Provisions
PREAMBLE
We, the Heads of State and Government of the Member
States of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU);
1. The President of the People's Democratic Republic
of Algeria
2. The President of the People's Republic of Angola
3. The President of the Republic of Benin
4. The President of the Republic of Botswana
5. The President of the Republic of Burkina Faso
6. The President of the Republic of Burundi
7. The President of the Republic of Cameroon
8. The President of the Republic of Cape Verde
9. The President of the Central African Republic
10. The President of the Federal Islamic Republic
of the Comoros
11. The President of the People's Republic of Congo
12. The President of the Republic of Cote d'Ivoire
13. The President of the Republic of Djibouti
14. The President of the Arab Republic of Egypt
15. The President of the People's Democratic Republic
of Ethiopia
16. The President of the Republic of Equatorial
Guinea
17. The President of the Republic of Gabon
18. The President of the Republic of the Gambia
19. The President of the Republic of Ghana
20. The President of the Republic of Guinea
21. The President of the Republic of Guinea Bissau
22. The President of the Republic of Kenya
23. The King of Lesotho
24. The President of the Republic of Liberia
25. The Leader of the 1st of September Revolution
of the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
26. The President of the Republic of Madagascar
27. The President of the Republic of Malawi
28. The President of the Republic of Mali
29. The President of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania
30. The Prime Minister of the Republic of Mauritius
31. The President of the Republic of Mozambique
32. The President of the Republic of Namibia
33. The President of the Republic of Niger
34. The President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
35. The President of the Republic of Rwanda
36. The President of Sahrawi Democratic Arab Republic
37. The President of the Republic of Sao Tome and
Principe
38. The President of the Republic of Senegal
39. The President of the Republic of Seychelles
40. The President of the Republic of Sierra Leone
41. The President of the Republic of Somalia
42. The President of the Republic of the Sudan
43. The King of Swaziland
44. The President of the United Republic of Tanzania
45. The President of the Republic of Tchad
46. The President of the Republic of Togo
47. The President of the Republic of Tunisia
48. The President of the Republic of Uganda
49. The President of the Republic of Zaire
50. The President of the Republic of Zambia
51. The President of the Republic of Zimbabwe
MINDFUL of the principles of international law
governing relations between States;
BEARING IN MIND the principles and objectives set
forth in the Charter of the Organisation of African
Unity;
CONSCIOUS of our duty to develop and utilise the
human and natural resources of the Continent for
the general well-being of our peoples in all fields
of human endeavour;
RECOGNIZING the various factors which hinder the
development of the Continent and seriously jeopardise
the future of its peoples;
HAVING REGARD to the various resolutions and declarations
adopted by our Assembly in Algiers in September
1968, in Addis Ababa in August 1970 and May 1973
providing that the economic integration of the Continent
is a pre-requisite for the realisation of the objectives
of the OAU;
HAVING REGARD to our decision taken in Libreville
in July 1977 endorsing the Kinshasa Declaration
adopted by our Council of Ministers in December
1976 concerning the establishment of an African
Economic Community, objective to be attained in
successive stages;
CONSIDERING the "Monrovia Declaration of Commitment
on the Guidelines and Measures for National and
Collective Self-reliance in Economic and Social
Development for the Establishment of a New International
Order" and which, inter-alia, calls for the
Creation of an African Common Market as a prelude
to an African Economic Community;
CONSIDERING FURTHER the Lagos Plan of Action and
the Final Act of Lagos of April 1980 reaffirming
our Commitment to establish, by the year 2000, an
African Economic Community in order to foster the
economic, social and cultural integration of our
Continent;
FINALLY CONSIDERING our Declaration made on the
occasion of the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the
OAU and, in particular, the reaffirmation of our
commitment and our determination to take the necessary
steps to accelerate the establishment of the proposed
African Economic Community;
NOTING that the efforts already made in the sub-regional
and regional sectoral economic co-operation are
encouraging and justify a larger and fuller economic
integration;
NOTING the need to share, in a equitable and just
manner, the advantages of co-operation among Member
States in order to promote a balanced development
in all parts of the Continent;
Have decided to establish an African Economic Community
constituting an integral part of the OAU and hereby
agree as follows:
CHAPTER I
Definitions
Article 1
For the purpose of this Treaty
"Treaty" shall mean the present Treaty;
"Protocol" shall mean an instrument of
implementation of the Treaty having the same legal
force as the latter;
"Community" shall mean the organic structure
for economic integration established under Article
2 of this Treaty and constituting an integral part
of the OAU;
"Region" shall mean an OAU region as defined
by Resolution CM/Res.464 QCXVI) of the OAU Council
of Ministers concerning the Division of Africa into
five (5) regions namely North Africa, West Africa,
Central Africa, East Africa and Southern Africa;
"Sub-region" shall mean at least three
(3) States of one or more regions as defined in
paragraph 1(d) of this Article;
"Member States" shall mean a Member State
of the Community;
"Third State" shall mean any State other
than a Member State;
"Assembly" shall mean the Assembly of
Heads of State and Government of the OAU as provided
for in Articles 7 and 8 of this Treaty,
"Council" shall mean the Council of Ministers
of the OAU as provided for in Articles 7 and 11
of this Treaty;
"Pan-African Parliament" shall mean the
parliamentary assembly established under Articles
7 and 14 of this Treaty;
"Commission" shall mean the Economic and
Social Commission of the OAU as provided for under
Articles 7 and 15 of this Treaty;
"Committee" shall mean any specialised
technical committee established under Articles 7
and 25 of this Treaty or in pursuance thereof;
"Court of Justice" shall mean the Court
of Justice of the Community constituted under Articles
7 and 18 of this Treaty;
"Secretariat" shall mean the General Secretariat
of the OAU provided for in Articles 7 and 21 of
this Treaty;
"Secretary-General" shall mean the Secretary-General
of the OAU as provided for in Article 23 of this
Treaty;
"Customs Duty" shall mean protective customs
duties and charges having equivalent effect, levied
on goods for their importation;
"Export Duties and Taxes" shall mean export
duties and charges having equivalent effect, levied
on goods for their exportation;
"Customs Duties and Taxes" shall mean
all duties and taxes as defined in paragraphs (p)
and (q) of this Article;
"Non-Tariff Barriers" shall mean barriers
which hamper trade and which are caused by obstacles
other than fiscal obstacles;
"Intra-Community Trade System" shall mean
the system under which advantages are accorded to
the goods referred to in Paragraph 1, Article 33
of this Treaty;
"Goods in Transit" shall mean goods being
transported between two Member States or between
a Member State and a third State and passing through
one or more Member States;
"Barter Agreement" or "Compensatory
Exchanges" shall mean any agreement under which
goods and services imported into a Member State
may be paid for in full or in part by direct exchange
of goods and services;
"Fund" shall mean the Solidarity, Development
and Compensation Fund of the Community established
pursuant to Article 80 of this Treaty; and
"Person" shall mean a natural or legal
person.
CHAPTER II
Establishment, Principles, Objectives, General
Undertaking and Modalities
Article 2
Establishment of the Community
THE HIGH CONTRACTING PARTIES hereby establish among
themselves an African Economic Community (AEC).
Article 3
Principles
THE HIGH CONTRACTING PARTIES, in pursuit of the
objectives stated in Article 4, of this Treaty solemnly
affirm and declare their adherence to the following
principles:
Equality and inter-dependence of Member States;
Solidarity and collective self-reliance;
Inter-State co-operation, harmonisation of policies
and integration of programmes;
Promotion of harmonious development of economic
activities among Member States;
Observance of the legal system of the Community;
Peaceful settlement of disputes among Member States,
active co-operation between neighbouring countries
and promotion of a peaceful environment as a pre-requisite
for economic development;
Recognition, promotion and protection of human and
peoples' rights in accordance with the provisions
of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights;
and
Accountability, economic justice and popular participation
in development.
Article 4
Objectives
1. The objectives of the Community shall be:
To promote economic, social and cultural development
and the integration of African economies in order
to increase economic self-reliance and promote an
endogenous and self-sustained development;
To establish, on a continental scale, a framework
for the development, mobilisation and utilisation
of the human and material resources of Africa in
order to achieve a self-reliant development;
To promote co-operation in all fields of human endeavour
in order to raise the standard of living of African
peoples, and maintain and enhance economic stability,
foster close and peaceful relations among Member
States and contribute to the progress, development
and the economic integration of the Continent; and
To coordinate and harmonize policies among existing
and future economic communities in order to foster
the gradual establishment of the Community.
2. In order to promote the attainment of the objectives
of the Community as set out in paragraph I of this
Article, and in accordance with the relevant provisions
of this Treaty, the Community shall, by stages,
ensure:
The strengthening of existing regional economic
communities and the establishment of other communities
where they do not exist;
The conclusion of agreements aimed at harmonising
and co-ordinating policies among existing and future
sub-regional and regional economic communities;
The promotion and strengthening of joint investment
programmes in the production and trade of major
products and inputs within the framework of collective
self-reliance;
The liberalisation of trade through the abolition,
among Member States, of Customs Duties levied on
imports and exports and the abolition, among Member
States of Non-Tariff Barriers in order to establish
a free trade area at the level of each regional
economic community;
The harmonisation of national policies in order
to promote Community activities, particularly in
the fields of agriculture, industry, transport and
communications, energy, natural resources, trade,
money and finance, human resources, education, culture,
science and technology;
The adoption of a common trade policy vis-à-vis
third States;
The establishment and maintenance of a common external
tariff;
The establishment of a common market;
The gradual removal, among Member States, of obstacles
to the free movement of persons, goods, services
and capital and the right of residence and establishment;
The establishment of a Community Solidarity, Development
and Compensation Fund;
The granting of special treatment to Member States
classified as least developed countries and the
adoption of special measures in favour of land-locked,
semi-land-locked and island countries;
The harmonisation and rationalisation of the activities
of existing African multinational institutions and
the establishment of such institutions, as and when
necessary, with a view to their possible transformation
into organs of the Community;
The establishment of appropriate organs for trade
in agricultural and cultural products, minerals,
metals, and manufactured and semi-manufactured goods
within the Community;
The establishment of contacts and the promotion
of information flow among trading organisations
such as State commercial enterprises, export promotion
and marketing bodies, chambers of commerce, associations
of businessmen, and business and advertising agencies;
The harmonisation and co-ordination of environmental
protection policies; and
Any other activity that Member States may decide
to undertake jointly with a view to attaining the
objectives of the Community.
Article 5
General Undertakings
1. Member States undertake to create favourable
conditions for the development of the Community
and the attainment of its objectives, particularly
by harmonising their strategies and policies. They
shall refrain from any unilateral action that may
hinder the attainment of the said objectives.
2. Each Member State shall, in accordance with
its constitutional procedures, take all necessary
measures to ensure the enactment and dissemination
of such legislation as may be necessary for the
implementation of the provisions of this Treaty.
3. Any Member State, which persistently fails to
honour its general undertakings under this Treaty
or fails to abide by the decisions or regulations
of the Community, may be subjected to sanctions
by the Assembly upon the recommendation of the Council.
Such sanctions may include the suspension of the
rights and privileges of membership and may be lifted
by the Assembly upon the recommendation of the Council.
Article 6
Modalities for the establishment of the Community
1. The Community shall be established gradually
in six (6) stages of variable duration over a transitional
period not exceeding thirty-four (34) years.
2. At each such stage, specific activities shall
be assigned and implemented concurrently as follows:
(a) First Stage:
Strengthening of existing regional economic communities
and, within a period not exceeding five (5) years
from the date of entry into force of this Treaty,
establishing economic communities in regions where
they do not exist;
(b) Second Stage:
At the level of each regional economic community
and within a period not exceeding eight (ii) years,
stabilising Tariff Barriers and Non-Tariff Barriers,
Customs Duties and internal taxes existing at the
date of entry into force of this Treaty; there shall
also be prepared and adopted studies to determine
the time-table for the gradual removal of Tariff
Barriers and Non-Tariff Barriers to regional and
intra-Community trade and for the gradual harmonisation
of Customs Duties in relation to third States;
Strengthening of sectoral integration at the regional
and continental levels in all areas of activity
particularly in the fields of trade, agriculture,
money and finance, transport and communications,
industry and energy; and
Co-ordination and harmonisation of activities among
the existing and future economic communities.
(c) Third Stage:
At the level of each regional economic community
and within a period not exceeding ten (10) years,
establishment of a Free Trade Area through the observance
of the time-table for the gradual removal of Tariff
Barriers and Non-Tariff Barriers to intra-community
trade and the establishment of a Customs Union by
means of adopting a common external tariff.
(d) Fourth Stage:
Within a period not exceeding two (2) years, co-ordination
and harmonisation of tariff and non-tariff systems
among the various regional economic communities
with a view to establishing a Customs Union at the
continental level by means of adopting a common
external tariff.
(e) Fifth Stage:
Within a period not exceeding four (4) years, establishment
of an African Common Market through:
The adoption of a common policy in several areas
such as agriculture, transport and communications,
industry, energy and scientific research;
The harmonisation of monetary, financial and fiscal
policies;
The application of the principle of free movement
of persons as well as the provisions herein regarding
the rights of residence and establishment; and
Constituting the proper resources of the Community
as provided for in paragraph 2 of Article 82 of
this Treaty.
(f) Sixth Stage:
Within a period not exceeding five (5) years:
Consolidation and strengthening of the structure
of the African Common Market, through including
the free movement of people, goods, capital and
services, as well as, the provisions herein regarding
the rights of residence and establishment;
Integration of all the sectors namely economic,
political, social and cultural; establishment of
a single domestic market and a Pan-African Economic
and Monetary Union;
Implementation of the final stage for the setting
up of an African Monetary Union, the establishment
of a single African Central Bank and the creation
of a single African Currency;
Implementation of the final stage for the setting
up of the structure of the Pan-African Parliament
and election of its members by continental universal
suffrage;
Implementation of the final stage for the harmonisation
and co-ordination process of the activities of regional
economic communities;
Implementation of the final stage for the setting
up of the structures of African multi-national enterprises
in all sectors; and
Implementation of the final stage for the setting
up of the structures of the executive organs of
the Community.
3. All measures envisaged under this Treaty for
the promotion of a harmonious and balanced development
among Member States, particularly, those relating
to the formulation of multi-national projects and
programmes, shall be implemented concurrently within
the time period specified for the attainment of
the objectives of the various stages outlined in
paragraph 2 of this Article.
4. The transition from one stage to another shall
be determined when the specific objectives set in
this Treaty or pronounced by the Assembly for a
particular stage, are implemented and all commitments
fulfilled. The Assembly, on the recommendation of
the Council, shall confirm that the objectives to
a particular stage have been attained and shall
approve the transition to the next stage.
5. Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding
paragraph, the cumulative transitional period shall
not exceed forty (40) years from the date of entry
into force of this Treaty.
CHAPTER III
Organs of the Community
Article 7
Organs
1. The organs of the Community shall be:
(a) The Assembly of Heads of State and Government;
(b) The Council of Ministers;
(c) The Pan-African Parliament;
(d) The Economic and Social Commission;
(e) The Court of Justice;
(f) The General Secretariat; and
(g) The Specialised Technical Committees.
2. The Organs of the Community shall perform their
duties and act within the limits of the powers conferred
on them by this Treaty.
Article 8
The Assembly of Heads of State and Government
Composition and Powers
1. The Assembly shall be the supreme organ of the
Community.
2. The Assembly shall be responsible for implementing
the objectives of the Community.
3. To this end, it shall:
Determine the general policy and major guidelines
of the Community, and give directives, coordinate
and harmonize the economic, scientific, technical,
cultural and social policies of Member States;
Take any action, under this Treaty, to attain the
objectives of the Community;
Oversee the functioning of Community organs as well
as the follow-up of the implementation of its objectives;
Prepare and adopt its rules of procedure;
Approve the organisational structure of the Secretariat;
Elect the Secretary-General, his Deputies and, on
the recommendation of the Council, appoint the Financial
Controller, the Accountant and the External Auditors;
Adopt the Staff Rules and Regulations of the Secretariat;
On the recommendation of the Council, take decisions
and give directives concerning the regional economic
communities in order to ensure the realisation of
the objectives of the Community;
On the recommendation of the Council, approve the
Community's programme of activity and budget and
determine the annual contribution of each Member
State;
Delegate to the Council the authority to take decisions
in pursuance of Article 10 of this Treaty;
Refer any matter to the Court of Justice when it
confirms, by an absolute majority vote, that a Member
State or organ of the Community has not honoured
any of its obligations or has acted beyond the limits
of its authority or has abused the powers conferred
on it by the provisions of this Treaty, by a decision
of the Assembly or a regulation of the Council;
Request the Court of Justice, as and when necessary,
to give advisory opinion on any legal question;
and
In carrying out its function hereunder, exercise
any other powers granted to it under this Treaty.
4. The Assembly shall be assisted by the Council
in the performance of its duties.
Article 9
Meetings
1. The Assembly shall meet once a year in regular
session. An extraordinary session may be convened
by the Chairman of the Assembly or at the request
of a Member State provided that such a request is
supported by two-thirds of the members of the Assembly.
2. The office of the chairman shall be held every
year by one of the Heads of State and Government
elected by the Assembly after consultation among
Member States.
Article 10
Decisions
1. The Assembly shall act by decisions.
2. Without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph
(5) Article 18, decisions shall be binding on Member
States and organs of the Community, as well as regional
economic communities.
3. Decision shall be automatically enforceable
thirty (30) days after the date of their signature
by the Chairman of the Assembly, and shall be published
in the official journal of the Community.
4. Unless otherwise provided in this Treaty, decision
of the Assembly shall be adopted by consensus, failing
that, by a two-thirds majority of Member States.
Article 11
The Council of Ministers Composition, Functions
and Powers
1. The Council shall be the Council of Minister
of the OAU.
2. The Council shall be responsible for the functioning
and development of the Community.
3. To this end, it shall:
Make recommendations to the Assembly on any action
aimed at attaining the objectives of the Community;
Guide the activities of the subordinate organs of
the Community;
Submit to the Assembly proposals concerning programmes
of activity and budget of the Community as well
as the annual contribution of each Member State;
Propose to the Assembly the appointment of the Financial
Controller, the Accountant and the External Auditors;
Prepare and adopt its rules of procedure;
Request the Court of Justice, as and when necessary,
to give advisory opinion on any legal questions;
and
Carry out all other functions assigned thereto under
this Treaty and exercise all powers delegated to
it by the Assembly.
Article 12
Meetings
1. The Council shall meet twice a year in Ordinary
Session. One such Session shall precede the Ordinary
Session of the Assembly. An extra-ordinary Session
may be convened by the Chairman of the Council or
at the request of a Member State provided that such
request is supported by two-thirds of the members
of the Council.
2. The office of the Chairman of the Council shall
be held by the Minister of a Member State elected
by the Council after consultations among its members.
Article 13
Regulations
1. The Council shall act by regulations.
2. Without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph
(5) of Article 18 of this Treaty, such regulations
shall be binding on Member States, subordinate organs
of the Community and regional economic communities
after their approval by the Assembly. Notwithstanding
the foregoing provisions, regulations adopted as
aforesaid shall forthwith have a binding effect
in the case of delegation of powers by the Assembly
pursuant to paragraph 3(j) of Article 8 hereof.
3. Regulations shall be enforceable automatically
thirty (30) days after the date of their signature
by the Chairman of the Council and shall be published
in the official journal of the Community.
4. Unless otherwise provided in this Treaty, regulations
shall be adopted by consensus or, failing that,
by two-thirds majority of Member States.
Article 14
The Pan-African Parliament
1. In order to ensure that the peoples of Africa
are fully involved in the economic development and
integration of the Continent, there shall be established
a Pan-African Parliament.
2. The composition, functions, powers and organisation
of the Pan-African Parliament shall be defined in
a Protocol providing thereof.
Article 15
Economic and Social Commission
Composition and Participation
1. The Commission shall be the Economic and Social
Commission of the OAU.
2. The Commission shall comprise Ministers responsible
for economic development, planning and integration
of each Member States. They may be assisted, as
and when necessary, by other Ministers.
3. Representatives of regional economic communities
shall participate in meetings of the Commission
and its subsidiary organs.
The modalities and conditions of their participation
shall be prescribed in the protocol concerning relations
between the Community and African regional and sub-regional
organisations and Third States. Representatives
of other organisations may also be invited to participate
as observers in the deliberations of the Commission.
Article 16
Functions
The Commission shall carry out the following functions:
Prepare, in accordance with the Lagos Plan of Action
and the Final Act of Lagos, programmes, policies
and strategies for co-operation in the fields of
economic and social development among African countries
on the on hand, and between Africa and the International
community on the other, and make appropriate recommendations
to the Assembly, through the Council;
Coordinate, harmonize, supervise and follow-up the
economic, social, cultural, scientific and technical
activities of the Secretariat, of the Committees
and any other subsidiary body;
Examine the reports and recommendations to the Assembly,
through the Council, and ensure their follow-up;
Make recommendations to the Assembly, through the
Council with a view of co-ordinating and harmonising
the activities of the different regional economic
communities;
Supervise the preparation of international negotiations,
assess the results thereof and report thereon to
the Assembly through the Council; and
Carry out all other functions assigned thereto by
the Assembly or the Council.
Article 17
Meetings
1. The Commission shall meet at least once a year
in Ordinary Session. It may be convened in extraordinary
Session either on its own initiative or at the request
of the Assembly or the Council.
2. The Ordinary Session of the Commission shall
be held immediately before the Ordinary Session
of the Council preceding the Session of the Assembly
and at the same venue of such Session.
3. The Commission shall prepare and adopt its rules
of procedure.
Article 18
Court of Justice Constitution and Functions
1. A Court of Justice of the Community is hereby
constituted.
2. The Court of Justice shall ensure the adherence
to law in the interpretation and application of
this Treaty and shall decide on disputes submitted
thereto pursuant to this Treaty
3. To this end, it shall:
Decide on actions brought by a Member State or
the Assembly on grounds of the violation of the
provisions of this Treaty, or of a decision or a
regulation or on grounds of lack of competence or
abuse of powers by an organ, an authority or a Member
State; and
At the request of the Assembly or Council, give
advisory opinion.
4. The Assembly may confer on the Court of Justice
the power to assume jurisdiction by virtue of this
Treaty over any dispute other than those referred
to in paragraph 3(a) of this Article.
5. The Court of Justice shall carry out the functions
assigned to it independently of the Member States
and the other organs of the Community.
Article 19
Decisions of the Court
The Decisions of the Court of Justice shall be
binding on Member States and organs of the Community.
Article 20
Organisation
The statutes, membership, procedures, and other
matters relating to the Court of Justice shall be
determined by the Assembly in a protocol relating
to the Court of Justice.
Article 21
Composition General Secretariat
1. The Secretariat shall be the General Secretariat
of the OAU.
2. The Secretariat shall be headed by the Secretary-General
assisted by the necessary staff for the smooth functioning
of the Community.
Article 22
Functions of the Secretary-General
1. The Secretary-General shall direct the activities
of the Secretariat and shall be its legal representative.
2. The Secretary-General shall:
Follow up and ensure the implementation of the
decisions of the Assembly and the application of
the regulations of the Council;
Promote development programmes as well as projects
of the Community;
Prepare proposals concerning the programme of activity
and budget of the Community and upon their approval
by the Assembly ensure the implementation thereof;
Submit a report on the activities of the Community
to all meetings of the Assembly, the Council and
the Commission;
Prepare and service meetings of the Assembly, the
Council, the Commission and the Committees;
Carry out studies with a view to attaining the objectives
of the Community and make proposals likely to enhance
the functioning and harmonious development of the
Community.
To this end, the Secretary-General may request any
Member State to furnish him with all necessary information;
and
Recruit the staff of the Community and make appointments
to all posts except those referred to in paragraph
3(f) of Article 8 of this Treaty.
Article 23
Appointments
1. The Secretary-General and his assistants shall
be elected by the Assembly in accordance with the
relevant provisions of the OAU Charter and the rules
of procedure of the Assembly.
2. The Financial Controller and the Accountant
shall be appointed by the Assembly for a term of
four (4) years renewable once only.
3. In the appointment of the staff of the Community,
and in addition to the need to ensure high integrity
and competence, consideration shall be given to
equitable geographical distribution of posts among
all Member States.
Article 24
Relations between the Staff of the Community and
Member States
1. In the performance of their duties, the Secretary-General
and his Assistants, the Financial Controller, the
Accountant and the staff of the Community shall
be accountable only to the Community. In this regard,
they shall neither seek nor accept instructions
from any Government or any national or international
authority external to the Community. They shall
refrain from any conduct incompatible with the nature
of their status as international officers.
2. Every Member State undertakes to respect the
international character of the duties of the Secretary-General,
his Assistants, the Financial Controller, the Accountant
and other officers of the Community and undertakes
not to influence them in the performance of their
duties.
3. Member States undertake to cooperate with the
Secretariat and other organs of the Community and
to assist them in the discharge of the functions
assigned thereto under this Treaty.
Article 25
Specialised Technical Committees
Establishment and Composition
1. There is hereby established the following Committees:
The Committee on Rural Economy and Agricultural
Matters;
The Committee on Monetary and Financial Affairs;
The Committee on Trade, Customs and Immigration
Matters;
The Committee on Industry, Science and Technology,
Energy, Natural Resources and Environment;
The Committee on Transport, Communications and Tourism;
The Committee on Health, Labour and Social Affairs;
and
The Committee on Education, Culture and Human Resources
2. The Assembly shall, whenever it deems appropriate,
restructure the existing Committees or establish
other Committees.
3. Each Committee shall comprise a representative
of each Member State. The representatives may be
assisted by advisors.
4. Each Committee may, as it deems it necessary,
set up subsidiary committees to assist the Committee
in carrying out its work. It shall determine the
composition of any such subsidiary Committee.
Article 26
Functions
Each Committee shall within its field of competence:
Prepare projects and programmes of the Community
and submit them to the Commission;
Ensure the supervision, follow-up and the evaluation
of the implementation of decisions taken by the
organs of the Community;
Ensure the co-ordination and harmonisation of projects
and programmes of the Community;
Submit to the Commission, either on its own initiative
or at the request of the Commission, reports and
recommendations on the implementation of the provisions
of this Treaty; and
Carry out any other functions assigned to it for
the purpose of ensuring the implementation of the
provisions of this Treaty.
Article 27
Meetings
1. Subject to any directives given by the Commission,
each Committee shall meet as often as necessary
and shall prepare its rules of procedure and submit
them to the Commission for approval.
CHAPTER IV
Regional Economic Communities
Article 28
Strengthening of Regional Economic Communities
1. During the first stage, Member States undertake
to strengthen the existing regional economic communities
and to establish new communities where they do not
exist in order to ensure the gradual establishment
of the Community.
2. Member States shall take all necessary measures
aimed at progressively promoting increasingly closer
co-operation among the communities, particularly
through co-ordination and harmonisation of their
activities in all fields or sectors in order to
ensure the realisation of the objectives of the
Community.
CHAPTER V
Customs Union and Liberalisation of Trade
Article 29
Customs Union
Member States of each regional economic community
agree to progressively establish among them during
a transitional period specified in Article 6 of
this Treaty, a Customs Union involving:
The elimination, among Members States of each regional
economic community, of customs duties, quota restrictions,
other restrictions or prohibitions and administrative
trade barriers, as well as all other non-tariff
barriers; and
The adoption by Member States of a common external
customs tariff.
Article 30
Elimination of Customs Duties Among Member States
of Regional Economic Communities
1. During the second stage, Member States of each
regional economic community shall refrain from establishing
among themselves any new customs duties and from
increasing those that apply in their mutual trade
relations.
2. During the third stage, Member States shall
progressively reduce and eliminate finally among
themselves, at the level of each regional economic
community, customs duties in accordance with such
programme and modalities as shall be determined
by each regional economic community.
3. During each stage, the Assembly, on the recommendation
of the Council, shall take the necessary measures
with a view to co-ordinating and harmonising the
activities of the regional economic communities
relating to the elimination of customs duties among
Member States.
Article 31
Elimination of Non-Tariff Barriers to Intra-Community
Trade
1. At the level of each regional economic community
and subject to the provisions of the Treaty, each
Member State shall, upon the entry into force of
this Treaty, progressively relax and ultimately
remove quota restrictions, and all other non-tariff
barriers and prohibitions which apply to exports
to that State, of goods originating in the other
Member States, at the latest, by the end of the
third stage and in accordance with paragraph (2)
of this Article. Except as otherwise provided or
permitted by this Treaty, each Member State shall
thereafter refrain from imposing any further restrictions
or prohibitions on such goods.
2. Subject to the provisions of this Treaty, each
regional economic community shall adopt a programme
for the progressive relaxation and ultimate elimination,
at the latest by the end of the third stage, of
all quota restrictions and prohibitions and all
other non-tariff barriers that apply in a Member
State, to imports originating in the other Member
States; it being understood that each regional economic
community may subsequently decide that all quota
restrictions, other restrictions and prohibitions
be relaxed or removed within a shorter period than
that prescribed in this paragraph.
3. The arrangements governing restrictions, prohibitions,
quota restrictions, dumping subsidies and discriminatory
practices shall be the subject of a Protocol concerning
Non-Tariff Trade Barriers.
Article 32
Establishment of a Common External Customs Tariff
1. During the third stage, Member States shall,
at the level of each regional economic community,
agree to the gradual establishment of a common external
customs tariff applicable to goods originating from
third States and imported into Member States.
2. During the fourth stage, regional economic communities
shall, in accordance with a programme drawn up by
them, eliminate differences between their respective
external customs tariffs.
3. During the fourth stage the Council shall propose
to the Assembly the adoption, at Community level,
of a common customs and statistical nomenclature
for all Member States.
Article 33
System of Intra-Community Trade
1. At the end of the third stage, no Member State
shall, at the level of each regional economic community,
levy customs duties on goods originating in one
Member State and imported into another Member State.
The same prohibition shall apply to goods originating
from third States which are in free circulation
in Member States and are imported from one Member
State into another.
2. The definition of the notion of products originating
in Member States and the rules governing goods originating
in a third States and which are in free circulation
in Member States shall be governed by a Protocol
concerning the Rules of Origin.
3. Goods originating from third States shall be
considered to be in free circulation in a Member
State if (i) the import formalities relating thereto
have been complied with, (ii) customs duties have
been paid thereon in that Member State, and (iii)
they have not benefited from a partial or total
exemption from such customs duties.
4. Member States undertake not to adopt legislation
implying direct or indirect discrimination against
identical or similar products originating from another
Member State.
Article 34
Internal Taxes
1. During the third stage, Member States shall
not levy, directly or indirectly on goods originating
from Member State and imported into any Member State,
internal taxes in excess of those levied on similar
domestic products.
2. Member States, at the level of each regional
economic community, shall progressively eliminate
any internal taxes levied for the protection of
domestic products. Whereby virtue of obligations
assumed under a prior agreement signed by a Member
State, that Member State is unable to comply with
this Article, it shall notify the Council of this
fact and shall not extend or renew such agreement
when it expires.
Article 35
Exceptions and Safeguard Clauses
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 30
and 31 of this Treaty, any Member State, having
made its intention known to the Secretariat of the
Community which shall inform Member States thereof,
may impose or continue to impose restrictions or
prohibitions affecting:
The application of security laws and regulations;
The control of arms, ammunitions and other military
items and equipment;
The protection of human, animal or plant health
or life, or the protection of public morality;
Export of strategic minerals and precious stones;
The protection of national treasures of artistic
or archaeological value or the protection of industrial,
commercial and intellectual property;
The control of hazardous wastes, nuclear materials,
radio-active products or any other material used
in the development or exploitation of nuclear energy;
Protection of infant industries;
The control of strategic product; and
Goods imported from a third country to which a Member
State applies total prohibition relating to country
of origin.
2. The prohibitions or restrictions referred to
in paragraph 1 of this Article shall in no case
be used as a means of arbitrary discrimination or
a disguised restriction on trade between Member
States.
3. Where a Member State encounters balance-of-payments
difficulties arising from the application of the
provisions of this Chapter, that Member State may
be allowed by the competent organ of the Community,
provided that it has taken all appropriate reasonable
steps to overcome the difficulties, to impose, for
the sole purpose of overcoming such difficulties,
quantitative or similar restrictions or prohibitions
on goods originating in the other Member States
for such period as shall be determined by the competent
organ of the Community.
4. For the purpose of protecting an infant or strategic
industry, a Member State may be allowed by the competent
organ of the Community, provided it has taken all
appropriate reasonable steps to protect such industry,
to impose, for the sole purpose of protecting such
industry, quantitative or similar restrictions or
prohibitions, on similar goods originating in the
other Member States for such period as shall be
determined by the competent organ of the Community.
5. Where the imports of a particular product by
a Member State from another Member State increase
in a way that causes, or is likely to cause, serious
damage to the economy of the importing states. The
latter may be allowed by the competent organ of
the Community to apply safeguard measures for a
specified period.
6. The Council shall keep under regular review
the operation of any quantitative or similar restrictions
or prohibitions imposed pursuant to paragraphs 13,
and 4 of this Article and shall take appropriate
action in this connection. It shall submit, each
year, to the Assembly, a report on the aforementioned
matters.
Article 36
Dumping
1. Member States shall prohibit the practice of
"dumping" within the Community.
2. For the purposes of this Article, "dumping"
shall mean the transfer of goods originating from
a Member State to another Member State for them
to be sold:
At a price lower than the usual price offered for
similar goods in the Member State from which those
goods originate, due account being taken of the
differences in conditions of sale, taxation, transport
expenses and any other factor affecting the comparison
of prices;
In conditions likely to prejudice the manufacture
of similar goods in the Member State.
Article 37
Most Favoured Nation Treatment
1. Member States shall accord one another, in relation
to intra-community trade, the most-favoured-nation
treatment. In no case shall tariff concessions granted
to a third State pursuant to an agreement with a
Member State be more favourable than those applicable
pursuant of this Treaty.
2. The text of the agreements referred to in paragraph
1 of this Article shall be forwarded by the Member
States parties thereto, through the Secretary-General,
to all the other Member States for their information.
3. No agreement between a Member State and a third
State, under which tariff concessions are granted,
shall be incompatible with the obligations arising
out of this Treaty.
Article 38
Re-export of Goods and Intra-Community Transit
Facilities
1. During the third stage, Member States shall
facilitate the re-export of goods among them in
accordance with the Protocol concerning the Re-export
of Goods.
2. Member States shall grant one another freedom
of transit through their territories to goods proceeding
to or coming from another Member State in accordance
with the Protocol concerning Intra-Community Transit
and Transit Facilities and in accordance with the
provisions of any Intra-Community Agreements to
be concluded.
Article 39
Customs Co-operation and Administration
Member States shall, in accordance with the Protocol
concerning Customs Co-operation, take all necessary
measures for harmonising and standardising their
customs regulations and procedures in such a manner
as shall be appropriate for ensuring the effective
implementation of the provisions of this Chapter
and facilitating the movement of goods and services
across their frontiers.
Article 40
Trade Documents and Procedures
For the purpose of facilitating intra-community
trade in goods and services, Member States shall
simplify and harmonize their trade documents and
procedures in accordance with the Protocol the concerning
Simplification and Harmonisation of Trade documents
and Procedures.
Article 41
Diversion of Trade Arising from Barter or Compensatory
Exchange Agreement
1. If, as a result of a barter or compensatory
exchange agreement relating to a specific category
of goods concluded between a Member State or a person
of the said Member Sate, on the one hand, and a
third State or person of the said third State, on
the other, there is substantial diversion of trade
in favour of goods imported under such agreement
and to the detriment of similar goods of the same
category imported from and manufactured in any other
Member State, the Member State importing such goods
shall take effective steps to correct the diversion.
2. In order to determine whether a diversion of
trade has occurred in a specific category of goods
within the meaning of this Article, consideration
shall be given to all the relevant trade statistics
and other data available on such category of goods
for the six-month period preceding a complaint from
an affected Member State concerning diversion of
trade, and for an average of two comparable six-month
periods during the twenty-four (24) months preceding
the first importation of goods under the barter
agreement or compensatory exchange agreement.
3. The Secretary-General shall refer the matter
to the Council for consideration and submission
to the Assembly for decision.
Article 42
Trade Promotion
In order to attain the objectives of the Community
set out in sub-paragraph 2 (m) Article 4 of this
Treaty, Member States agree to undertake the trade
promotion activities stated below in the following
areas:
Intra-Community Trade
Promote the use of the Community's local materials,
intermediate goods and inputs, as well as finished
products originating within the Community;
Adopt the "All-Africa Trade Fair of the OAU",
as an instrument of the Community trade promotion;
Participate in the periodic fairs organised under
the auspices of the "All-Africa Trade Fair
of the OAU", sectoral trade fairs, regional
trade fairs and other trade promotion activities
of the Community;
Develop an intra-community trade information network,
linking the computerised trade information systems
of existing and future regional economic communities
and individual Member States of the Community; and
With the assistance of the Secretariat, study the
supply and demand patterns in Member States and
disseminate the findings thereon within the Community.
South-South Trade
Promote the diversification of Africa's markets,
and the marketing of Community products;
Participate in extra-community trade fairs, in particular,
within the context of South-South Co-operation;
and
Participate in extra-community trade and investment
fora.
North-South Trade
Promote better terms of trade for African commodities
and improve market access for Community products;
Participate as a group in international negotiations
within the framework of GATT and UNCTAD and other
trade-related negotiating fora.
2. The modalities of organising trade promotion
activities and trade information systems of the
Community shall be governed by a Protocol concerning
Trade Promotion.
CHAPTER VI
Free Movement of Persons, Rights of Residence and
Establishment
Article 43
General Provisions
1. Member States agree to adopt, individually,
at bilateral or regional levels, the necessary measures,
in order to achieve progressively the free movement
of persons, and to ensure the enjoyment of the right
of residence and the right of establishment by their
nationals within the Community.
2. For this purpose, Member States agree to conclude
a Protocol on the Free Movement of Persons, Right
of Residence and Right of Establishment.
CHAPTER VII
Money, Finance and Payments
Article 44
Monetary, Financial and Payment Policies
1. In accordance with the relevant Protocols, Member
States shall, within a time-table to be determined
by the Assembly, harmonize their monetary, financial
and payments policies, in order to boost intra-community
trade in goods and services, to further the attainment
of objectives of the Community and to enhance monetary
and financial co-operation among Member States.
2. To this end, Member States shall:
Use their national currencies in the settlement
of commercial and financial transactions in order
to reduce the use of external currencies in such
transactions;
Establish appropriate mechanisms for setting up
multilateral payments systems;
Consult regularly among themselves on monetary and
financial matters;
Promote the creation of national, regional and sub-regional
money markets, through the co-ordinated establishment
of stock exchanges and harmonising legal texts regulating
existing stock exchanges with a view to making them
more effective.
Cooperate in an effective manner in the fields of
insurance and banking;
Further the liberalisation of payments and the elimination
of payment restrictions, if any, among them and
promote the integration of all existing payments
and clearing mechanisms among the different regions
into an African Clearing and Payments House; and
Establish an African Monetary Union through the
harmonisation of regional monetary zones.
Article 45
Movement of Capital
1. Member States shall ensure the free movement
of capital within the Community through the elimination
of restrictions on the transfer of capital funds
between Member States in accordance with a timetable
to be determined by the Council.
2. The capital referred to in paragraph 1 of this
Article is that of Member States or persons of Member
States.
3. The Assembly, having regard to the development
objectives of national, regional and continental
plans, and upon the recommendation of the Commission
and after the approval of the Council acting on
the recommendation of the Commission, shall prescribe
the conditions for the movement within the Community
of the capital funds other than those referred to
in paragraph (2) of this Article.
4. For the purpose of regulating the movement of
capital between Member States and Third States,
the Assembly, upon the approval of the Council,
acting on the recommendation of the Commission,
shall take steps aimed at co-ordinating progressively
the national and regional exchange control policies.
CHAPTER VIII
Food and Agriculture
Article 46
Agricultural Development and Food Production
1. Member States shall cooperate in the development
of agriculture, forestry, livestock and fisheries
in order to:
Ensure food security;
Increase production and productivity in agriculture,
livestock, fisheries and forestry, and improve conditions
of work and generate employment opportunities in
rural areas;
Enhance agricultural production through processing
locally animal and plant products; and
Protect the prices of export commodities on the
international market by means of establishing an
African Commodity Exchange.
2. To this end, and in order to promote the integration
of production structures, Member States shall cooperate
in the following fields:
The production of agricultural inputs, fertilisers,
pesticides, selected seeds, agricultural machinery
and equipment and veterinary products;
The development of river and lake basins;
The development and protection of marine and fishery
resources;
Plant and animal protection;
The harmonisation of agricultural development strategies
and policies at regional and Community levels, in
particular, in so far as they relate to production,
trade and marketing of major agricultural products
and inputs; and
The harmonisation of food security policies in order
to ensure:
The reduction of losses in food production;
The strengthening of existing institutions for the
management of natural calamities, agricultural diseases
and pest control;
The conclusion of agreements on food security at
the regional and continental levels;
The provision of food aid to Member States in the
event of serious food shortage; and
The protection of regional and continental markets
primarily for the benefit of African agricultural
products.
Article 47
Protocol on Food and Agriculture
For purposes of this Chapter, Member States shall
cooperate in accordance with the provisions of the
Protocol on Food and Agriculture.
CHAPTER IX
Industry, Science, Technology, Energy, Natural
Resources and Environment
Article 48
Industry
1. For the purpose of promoting industrial development
of Member States and integrating their economies,
Member States shall within the Community harmonize
their industrialisation policies.
2. In this connection, Member States shall:
Strengthen the industrial base of the Community,
in order to modernize the priority sectors and foster
self-sustained and self-reliant development;
Promote joint industrial development projects at
regional and Community levels, as well as the creation
of African multinational enterprises in priority
industrial sub-sectors likely to contribute to the
development of agriculture, transport and communications,
natural resources and energy.
Article 49
Industrial Development
In order to create a solid basis for industrialisation
and promote collective self-reliance, Member States
shall:
Ensure the development of the following basic industries
essential for collective self-reliance and the modernisation
of priority sectors of the economy:
Food and agro-based industries;
Building and construction industries;
Metallurgical industries;
Mechanical industries;
Electrical and electronics industries;
Chemical and petro-chemical industries;
Forestry industries;
Energy industries;
Textile and leather industries;
Transport and communications industries; and
Biotechnology industries;
Ensure the promotion of small-scale industries with
a view to enhancing the generation of employment
opportunities in Member States;
Promote intermediate industries that have strong
linkages to the economy in order to increase the
local component of industrial output within the
Community;
Prepare master plans at regional and Community levels
for the establishment of African multinational industries
particularly those whose construction cost and volumes
of production exceed national financial and absorptive
capacities;
Strengthen and establish, where they do not exist,
specialised institutions for the financing of African
multinational industrial projects;
Facilitate the establishment of African multinational
enterprises and encourage and give financial and
technical support to African entrepreneurs;
Promote the sale and consumption of strategic industrial
products manufactured in Member States;
Promote technical co-operation and the exchange
of experience in the field of industrial technology
and implement technical training programmes among
Member States;
Strengthen the existing multinational institutions,
particularly, the African Regional Centre for Technology,
the African Regional Centre for Design and Manufacture
and the African Industrial Development Fund;
Establish a data and statistical information base
to serve industrial development at the regional
and continental levels;
Promote South-South and North-South co-operation
for the attainment of industrialisation objectives
in Africa;
Promote industrial specialisation in order to enhance
the complementarity of African economies and expand
the intra-Community trade base, due account being
taken of national and regional resource endowments;
and
Adopt common standards and appropriate quality control
systems, which are crucial to industrial co-operation
and integration.
Article 50
Protocol on Industry
For the purposes of Articles 48 and 49 of this
Treaty, Member States agree to cooperate in accordance
with the provisions of the Protocol on Industry.
Article 51
Science and Technology
1. Member States shall:
Strengthen scientific and technological capabilities
in order to bring about the socio-economic transformation
required to improve the quality of life of their
population, particularly that of the rural populations;
Ensure the proper application of science and technology
to the development of agriculture, transport and
communications, industry, health and hygiene, energy,
education and manpower and the conservation of the
environment;
Reduce their dependence and promote their individual
and collective technological self-reliance;
Cooperate in the development, acquisition and dissemination
of appropriate technologies; and
Strengthen existing scientific research institutions
and, where they do not exist, establish new institutions.
2. In the context of co-operation in this field,
Member States shall:
Harmonize, at the Community level, their national
policies on scientific and technological research
with a view to facilitating their integration into
the national economic and social development plans;
Coordinate their programmes in applied research,
research for development and scientific and technological
services;
Harmonize their national technological development
plans by placing special emphasis on local technologies
as well as their regulations on industrial property
and transfer of technology;
Coordinate their positions on all scientific and
technical questions forming the subject of international
negotiations;
Carry out a permanent exchange of information and
documentation and establish community data networks
and data banks;
Develop joint programmes for training scientific
and technological cadres, including the training
and further training of skilled manpower;
Promote exchanges of researchers and specialists
among Member States in order to make full use of
the technical skills available within the Community;
and
Revise the educational systems in order to better
educational, scientific and technical training to
the specific developmental needs of the African
environment.
Article 52
Scientific Research and Technological Programmes
Member States shall take all necessary measures
to prepare and implement joint scientific research
and technological development programmes.
Article 53
Protocol on Science and Technology
For the purposes of Articles 51 and 52 of this
Treaty, Member States agree to cooperate in accordance
with the provisions of the Protocol on Science and
Technology.
Article 54
Energy and Natural Resources
1. Member States shall coordinate and harmonize
their policies and programmes in the field of energy
and natural resources.
2. To this end, they shall:
Ensure the effective development of the continent's
energy and natural resources;
Establish appropriate co-operation mechanisms with
a view to ensuring a regular supply of hydrocarbons;
Promote the development of new and renewable energy
in the framework of the policy of diversification
of sources of energy;
Harmonize their national energy development plans;
Articulate a common energy policy, particularly,
in the field of research, exploitation, production
and distribution;
Establish an adequate mechanism of concerted action
and co-ordination for the collective solution of
the energy development problems within the Community,
particularly, those relating to energy transmission,
the shortage of skilled technicians and financial
resources for the implementation of energy projects
of Member States; and
Promote the continuous training of skilled manpower.
Article 55
Energy
1. Member States shall cooperate in the following
fields:
(a) Mineral and water resources;
(b) Nuclear energy;
(c) New and renewable energy.
2. They shall further:
Seek better knowledge and undertake an assessment
of their natural resources potential;
Reduce progressively their dependence on transnational
enterprises in the development of such resources,
particularly through mastering exploration techniques;
and
Improve methods of pricing and marketing raw materials.
Article 56
Natural Resources
In order to promote co-operation in the area of
natural resources and energy, Member States shall:
Exchange information on the prospection, mapping,
production and processing of mineral resources,
as well as on the prospection, exploitation and
distribution of water resources;
Coordinate their programmes for development and
utilisation of mineral and water resources;
Promote vertical and horizontal inter-industrial
relationships, which may be established among Member
States in the course of developing such resources;
Coordinate their positions in all international
negotiations on raw materials;
Develop a system of transfer of know-how and exchange
of scientific, technical and economic data in remote
sensing among Member States; and
Prepare and implement joint training and further
training programmes for cadres in order to develop
the human resources and the appropriate local technological
capabilities required for the exploration, exploitation
and processing of mineral and water resources.
Article 57
Protocol on Energy and Natural Resources
For the purposes of Articles 54, 55 and 56 of this
Treaty, Member States shall cooperate in accordance
with the provisions of the Protocol on Energy and
Natural Resources.
Article 58
Environment
1. Member States undertake to promote a healthy
environment. To this end, they shall adopt national,
regional and continental policies, strategies and
programmes and establish appropriate institutions
for the protection and enhancement of the environment.
2. For the purposes of this paragraph 1 of this
Article, Member States shall take the necessary
measures to accelerate the reform and innovation
process leading to ecologically rational, economically
sound and socially acceptable development policies
and programmes.
Article 59
Control of Hazardous Wastes
Member States undertake, individually and collectively,
to take every appropriate step to ban the importation
and dumping of hazardous wastes in their respective
territories. They further undertake to cooperate
in the transboundary movement, management and processing
of such wastes produced in Africa.
Article 60
Protocol on the Environment
For the purposes of Articles 58 and 59 of this
Treaty, Member States shall cooperate in accordance
with the provisions of the Protocol on the Environment.
CHAPTER X
Transport, Communication and Tourism
Article 61
Transport and Communications
1. In order to achieve a harmonious and integrated
development of the continental transport and communications
network, Member States shall undertake to:
Promote the integration of transport and communications
infrastructure;
Coordinate the various modes of transport in order
to increase their efficiency;
Harmonize progressively their rules and regulations
relating to transport and communications;
Encourage the use of local material and human resources,
standardisation of networks and equipment, research
and the popularisation of infrastructural construction
techniques as well as adapted equipment and materials;
Expand, modernize and maintain transport and communications
infrastructures by means of mobilising the necessary
technological and financial resources;
Promote the creation of regional industries for
the production of transport and communications equipment;
and
Organize, structure and promote, at regional and
Community levels, passenger and goods transport
services.
2. To this end, Member States shall:
Draw up co-ordinated programmes to restructure
the road transport sector for purposes of establishing
inter-State links and the construction of major
transcontinental trunk roads;
Prepare plans to improve, re-organize and standardise
the various rail networks of Member States with
a view to their inter-connection and construct new
railways as part of a Pan-African network;
Harmonize:
Their policies on maritime, inter-State lake and
river transport;
Their air transport policies;
Their programmes on the training and further training
of specialised cadres in transport and communications;
Modernize and standardise their transport and communications
equipment in order to permit Member States to be
linked with one another and with the outside world;
Promote proper integration of air transport in Africa
and coordinate flight schedules; and
Coordinate and harmonize their transport policies
at regional and Community levels in order to eliminate
non-physical barriers that hamper the free movement
of goods, services and persons.
Article 62
Community Enterprises in the Field of Transport
1. Member States shall encourage the establishment
of Community and African multinational enterprises
in the fields of maritime, rail, road, inland waterways
and air transport.
2. The expression "Community and multinational
enterprises" and the legal status thereof shall
be as defined in the relevant Protocol.
Article 63
Posts and Telecommunications
1. In the field of Posts, Member States undertake
to:
Establish a Pan-African Postal Network;
Adopt a policy of rationalisation and maximisation
of conveyance of mail;
Ensure that the Post has a legal status, an efficient
management system and the resources necessary for
providing reliable services to meet customer demands;
and
Create customer-oriented and competitive services.
2. In the field of Telecommunications, Member States
shall:
Develop, modernize, coordinate and standardise
their national telecommunications networks in order
to provide reliable inter-connection among Member
States;
Establish a Pan-African Telecommunications Network
and ensure its utilisation and maintenance;
Establish a Pan-African system of communications
by satellite in order to improve telecommunications,
particularly in rural areas.
3. Member States further undertake to provide efficient
and regular Post and Telecommunication services
within the Community, and to develop close collaboration
among Post and Telecommunications administrations.
4. In order to attain the objectives set out in
this Article, Member States shall also encourage
the establishment of private companies for post
and telecommunications services.
Article 64
Broadcasting
1. Member States undertake to:
Coordinate their efforts and pool their resources
in order to promote the exchange of radio and television
programmes at bilateral, regional and continental
levels;
Encourage the establishment of programme exchange
centres at regional and continental levels. In this
connection, Member States shall strengthen the activities
and operations of existing programme exchange centres;
and
Use their broadcasting and television systems in
order to further close co-operation and better understanding
among their peoples and, in particular, to promote
the objectives of the Community.
2. Member States further undertake to collect, disseminate
and exchange meteorological information at the continental
level, particularly with regard to the development
of early warning systems for the prevention of natural
disasters and for ensuring safety in aerial, coastal
and inland navigation.
Article 65
Tourism
1. For the purpose of ensuring the harmonious and
profitable development of tourism in Africa, Member
States undertake to:
Strengthen intra-African co-operation in tourism,
particularly through:
The promotion of intra-African tourism;
The harmonisation and co-ordination of tourism development
policies, plans and programmes; and
Joint promotion of tourism products representing
Africa's natural and socio-cultural values.
Promote the establishment of efficient tourism enterprises
adapted to the needs of the African people and attractive
to foreign tourists, through:
The adoption of measures designed to promote investment
in tourism with a view to the establishment of competitive
African tourist enterprises;
Adoption of measures designed to develop and utilise
human resources for tourism in Africa; and
Strengthening or establishment of high-level tourism
training institutions where necessary.
2. Member States shall adopt all requisite measures
for the development of African tourism that takes
due account of the human and natural environment
and the well-being of the African peoples and which
contribute effectively to the implementation of
the continent's political and socio-economic integration
and development.
Article 66
Protocol on Transport, Communication and Tourism
For the purposes of this Chapter, Member States
undertake to cooperate in accordance with the provisions
of the Protocol on Transport, Communications and
Tourism.
CHAPTER XI
Standardisation and Measurement Systems
Article 67
Common Policy on Standardisation and Measurement
Systems
1. Member States agree to:
Adopt a common policy on standardisation and quality
assurance of goods and services among Member States;
Undertake such other related activities in standardisation
and measurement systems that are likely to promote
trade, economic development and integration within
the Community; and
Strengthen African national, regional and continental
organisations operating in this field.
2. For the purposes of this Chapter, Member States
agree to cooperate in accordance with the provisions
of the Protocol concerning Standardisation, Quality
Assurance and Measurement Systems.
CHAPTER XII
Education, Training and Culture
Article 68
Education and Training
1. Member States shall strengthen co-operation
among themselves in the field of education and training
and coordinate and harmonize their policies in this
field for the purpose of training persons capable
of fostering the changes necessary for enhancing
social progress and the development of the Continent.
2. For the purposes of paragraph 1 of this Article,
Member States undertake to:
Improve the efficiency of existing educational
systems by promoting the training of trainers and
using appropriate methods and aids;
Cooperate in the strengthening of existing regional
and Community training institutions and where necessary,
establish new institutions, preferably through the
strengthening of appropriate existing national and
regional institutions;
Prepare, coordinate and harmonize joint training
programmes with a view to adapting them to development
needs thereby ensuring progressively self-sufficiency
in skilled personnel;
Promote the systematic exchange of experience and
information on education policy and planning; and
Take appropriate measures to stop the brain- drain
from the Community and encourage the return of qualified
professionals and skilled manpower to their countries
of origin.
Article 69
Culture
Member states shall:
Pursue the objectives of the Cultural Charter for
Africa;
Promote and propagate endogenous African cultural
value;
Make every effort to preserve and recover their
cultural heritage;
Ensure that development policies adequately reflect
their socio-cultural values in order to consolidate
their cultural identity
Exchange their cultural programmes and their experiences,
particularly in art, literature, entertainment,
sports and leisure activities; and
Promote and develop sports programmes and activities
at all levels as factors of integration.
Article 70
Protocol on Education, Training and Culture
For the purposes of this Chapter, Member States
agree to cooperate in accordance with the provisions
of the Protocol on Education, Training and Culture.
CHAPTER XIII
Human Resources, Social Affairs, Health and Population
Article 71
Human Resources
1. Member States agree to cooperate with a view
to developing, planning and utilising their human
resources.
2. To this end, they undertake to:
Adopt and promote a common policy on planning,
programming, professional training and harmonize
their employment and income policies;
Coordinate their policies and activities in the
fields of training, planning and career guidance
and counselling;
Improve their information and recruitment services
in order to facilitate, in particular, the search
for, and recruitment of African experts;
Encourage consultancy agencies to promote the use
of African experts and the development of local
consultancy services; and
Adopt employment policies that shall allow the free
movement of persons within the Community by strengthening
and establishing labour exchanges aimed at facilitating
the employment of available skilled manpower of
one Member State in other Member States where there
are shortages of skilled manpower.
Article 72
Social Affairs
1. Member States agree to ensure the full participation
and rational utilisation of their human resources
in their development efforts with a view to eliminating
other social scourges plaguing the continent.
2. To this end they undertake to:
Encourage the exchange of experiences and information
on literacy, vocational training and employment;
Harmonize gradually their labour and social security
legislation with a view to eliminating poverty and
promoting balanced socio-economic development within
the Community;
Take necessary measures for the survival and development
of the child and the protection of the child against
abuse, neglect and exploitation;
Provide disabled persons with adequate training
likely to facilitate their social integration and
enable them contribute to the attainment of the
objectives of the Community;
Create conditions conducive to the training of young
school leavers, and other youth, in order to enable
them to be gainfully employed;
Adopt, coordinate and harmonize their policies with
a view to ensuring a decent life for the aged; and
(g) harmonize their efforts to put an end to the
illegal production, trafficking and use of narcotic
drugs and psycho4ropic substances and formulate
sensitization and rehabilitation programmes in this
field.
Article 73
Health
1. Member States agree to promote and increase
co-operation among themselves in the field of health.
2. To this end, they shall cooperate in developing
primary health care, promoting medical research,
particularly in the field of African traditional
medicine and pharmacopoeia.
Article 74
Population and Development
1. Member States undertake to adopt, individually
and collectively, national population policies and
mechanisms and take all necessary measures in order
to ensure a balance between population growth and
socio-economic development.
2. To this end, Member States agree to:
Include population issues as central elements for
formulating and implementing national policies and
programmes for accelerated and balanced socio-economic
development;
Formulate national population policies and establish
national population institutions;
Undertake public sensitization on population matters,
particularly, among the target groups; and
Collect, analyse and exchange information and data
on population issues.
Article 75
Women and Development
1. Member States agree to formulate, harmonize,
coordinate and establish appropriate policies and
mechanisms for the full development of the African
woman through the improvement of her economic, social
and cultural conditions.
2. To this end, Member States shall take all measures
necessary to ensure greater integration of women
in development activities within the Community.
Article 76
Protocols on Human Resources, Social Affairs, Health
and Population
For the purposes of this Chapter, Member States
undertake to cooperate in accordance with the provisions
of the Protocols on Human Resources, Social Affairs,
Health and Population.
CHAPTER XIV
Co-operation in other fields
Articles 77
Harmonisation of policies in other fields
Subject to the provisions of this Treaty, Member
States agree to consult with one another, through
appropriate Community organs, for the purpose of
harmonising their respective policies in other fields
for the efficient functioning and development of
the Community and for the implementation of the
provisions of this Treaty.
CHAPTER XV
Special Provisions in Respect of Certain Countries
Article 78
Special Provisions in Respect of Botswana, Lesotho,
Namibia and Swaziland
1. Member States, recognising the exceptional situation
of Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland within
the Community and their membership in the Southern
Africa Customs Union, agree to grant them temporary
exemption from the full application of certain provisions
of this Treaty.
2. For this purpose, Member States shall adopt
a Protocol on the Exceptional Situation of Botswana,
Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland.
Article 79
Special Provisions in respect of the Least Developed,
Landlocked, Semi-Landlocked and Island Countries
1. Member States, taking into consideration the
special economic and social difficulties that may
arise in certain Member States and especially the
least developed, land- locked, semi4and-locked and
island countries, shall grant them, where appropriate,
special treatment in respect of the application
of certain provisions of this Treaty, and shall
accord them any other assistance that they may need.
2. The special treatment and assistance referred
to in paragraph 1 of this Article may consist, inter
alia of:
Temporary exemptions from the full application
of certain provisions of this Treaty; and
Assistance from the Fund.
3. For purposes of this Chapter, Member States agree
to adopt a protocol on the situation of the least
developed, land-locked, semi-land-locked and island
countries.
CHAPTER XVI
Solidarity, Development and Compensation Fund
Article 80
Establishment
1. A Solidarity, Development and Compensation Fund
of the Community is hereby established.
Article 81
Objectives and Statutes of the Fund
1. The Statutes of the Fund shall be established
by the Assembly in a Protocol relating thereto.
2. The Statutes shall determine, inter alia, the
objectives, the authorised capital stock, resources
of the Fund, contributions of Member States, the
currencies in which contributions shall be paid,
the functioning, organisation and management of
the Fund and any other related matters.
CHAPTER XVII
Financial Provisions
Article 82
Regular Budget of the Community
1. The annual regular budget of the Community,
which constitutes an integral part of the OAU regular
budget, shall be prepared by the Secretary-General
and approved by the Assembly upon the recommendation
of the Council.
2. The budget shall be funded by contributions
made by Member States in accordance with the scale
of assessment of the OAU. Upon the recommendation
of the Council, the Assembly shall determine the
conditions under which the financial contributions
of Member States may be supplemented or, where necessary
replaced by the proper resources of the Community.
Article 83
Special Budgets
Special budgets shall be made available, where
necessary, to meet the extra-budgetary expenditure
of the Community. The Assembly shall determine the
contributions of Member States to special budgets
of the Community.
Article 84
Sanctions Relating to Non-Payment of Contributions
1. Upon the decision of the Assembly, any Member
State of the Community having arrears in the payment
of its contribution to the budget of the Community,
shall not have the right to vote or participate
in taking decisions of the Community if the amount
of its arrears is equal to, or is in excess of the
contribution payable by such State for the last
preceding two financial years. Such Member State
shall cease to enjoy other benefits arising by virtue
of this Treaty as well as the right to address meetings.
In addition, it shall lose the right to present
candidates for vacant posts within the Community
and shall not be eligible for office in the deliberative
organs of the Community. The Assembly may, where
necessary, impose other sanctions on a Member State
for non-payment of contributions.
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph
1 of this Article, the Assembly may suspend the
application of the provisions of the said paragraph
if it is satisfied, on the basis of a satisfactory
explanatory report by the Member State through the
Secretary-General, that the non-payment of contributions
is due to causes and circumstances beyond the control
of the said Member State.
3. The Assembly shall decide on the modalities
for the application of this Article.
Article 85
Financial Rules and Regulations
The Financial Rules and Regulations of the OAU
shall govern the application of the provisions of
this Chapter.
Article 86
Board of External Auditors
The selection procedure, terms of appointment,
and duties and responsibilities of the Board of
External Auditors shall be defined in the financial
rules and regulations.
CHAPTER XVIII
Settlement of disputes
Article 87
Procedure for the Settlement of Disputes
1. Any dispute regarding the interpretation of
the application of the provisions of this Treaty
shall be amicably settled through direct agreement
by the parties to the dispute. If the parties concerned
fail to settle such dispute, either party may, within
a period of twelve (12) months, refer the matter
to the Court of Justice.
2. The decisions of the Court of Justice shall
be final and shall not be subject to appeal.
Chapter XIX
Relations between the Community and Regional Economic
Communities, Regional Continental Organisations
and other Socio-Economic Organisations and Associations
Article 88
Relations between the Community and Regional Economic
Communities
1. The Community shall be established mainly through
the co-ordination, harmonisation and progressive
integration of the activities of regional economic
communities.
2. Member States undertake to promote the co-ordination
and harmonisation of the integration activities
of regional economic communities of which they are
members with the activities of the Community, it
being understood that the establishment of the latter
is the final objective towards which the activities
of existing and future regional economic communities
shall be geared.
3. To this end, the Community shall be entrusted
with the co-ordination, harmonisation and evaluation
of the activities of existing and future regional
economic communities.
4. Member States undertake, through their respective
regional economic communities, to coordinate and
harmonize the activities of their sub-regional organisations,
with a view to rationalising the integration process
at the level of each region.
Article 89
Relations between the Community and African Continental
Organisations
The Community shall closely cooperate with African
continental organisations including, in particular,
the African development Bank and African Centre
for Monetary Studies in order to ensure the attainment
of regional and continental integration objectives.
It may conclude co-operation agreements with these
Organisations.
Article 90
Relations between the Community and African Non-Governmental
Organisations
1. The Community, in the context of mobilising
the human and material resources of Africa, shall
establish relations of co-operation with African
Non-Governmental organisations, with a view to encouraging
the involvement of the African peoples in the process
of economic integration and mobilising their technical,
material and financial support.
2. To this end, the Community shall set up a mechanism
for consultation with such Non-Governmental organisations.
Article 91
Relations between the Community and Socio-Economic
Organisations and Associations
1. The Community, in the context of mobilising
the various actors of socio-economic life, shall
establish relations of co-operation with socio-economic
organisations and associations including mainly,
producers, transport operators, workers, employers,
youth, women, artisans and other professional organisations
and associations with a view to ensuring their involvement
in the integration process of Africa.
2. To this end, the Community shall set up a mechanism
for consultation with such socio-economic organisations
and associations.
CHAPTER XX
Relations between the Community, Third States and
International Organisations
Article 92
Co-operation Agreements
1. The Community may conclude co-operation agreements
with third States.
2. In the pursuit of its objectives, the Community
shall ensure the establishment of relations of co-operation
with the United Nations System, particularly, the
United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, specialised
agencies of the United Nations and any other international
organisation, with a view to attaining the objectives
of the Community.
3. Co-operation Agreements to be concluded pursuant
to the provisions of Paragraphs 1 and 2 of this
Article shall be submitted to the Assembly for approval
upon the recommendation of the Council.
CHAPTER XXI
Relations between Member States, Third States,
Regional and Sub-Regional Organisations and International
Organisations
Article 93
Agreements concluded by Member States
1. Member States may conclude economic, technical
or cultural agreements with one or several Member
States, and with Third States, regional and sub-regional
organisations or any other international organisation,
provided that such agreements are not incompatible
with the provisions of this Treaty. They shall transmit
such agreements to the Secretary-General who shall
inform the Council thereof.
2. In the event of incompatibility of agreements
concluded, prior to the entry into force of this
Treaty among Member States or between the Member
States and Third States, sub-regional or regional
organisations or any other international organisation,
with the provisions of this Treaty, the Member State
or Member States concerned shall take the appropriate
steps to eliminate such incompatibility. To this
end, Member States shall, where necessary, assist
each other and adopt a common position.
Article 94
International Negotiations
1. Member States undertake to formulate and adopt
common positions within the Community on issues
relating to international negotiations in order
to promote and safeguard the interests of Africa.
2. To this end, the Community shall prepare studies
and reports designed to help Member States to better
harmonize their positions on the said issues.
Article 95
Protocols on Chapters XIX, XX and XXI
Member States hereby agree to conclude the Protocols
relating to Chapters XIX, XX and XXI of this Treaty.
CHAPTER XXII
Miscellaneous Provisions
Article 96
Headquarters of the Community
The Headquarters of the Community shall be one
and the same as that of the OAU.
Article 97
Working Languages
The working languages of the Community shall be
the same as those of the OAU.
Article 98
Legal Status
1. The Community shall form an integral part of
the OAU.
2. In his capacity as the legal representative
of the Community the Secretary-General may, on behalf
of the Community:
Enter into contracts; and
Be a party to judicial and other legal proceedings.
3. Subject to prior approval of the Council, the
Secretary-General may, on behalf of the Community:
(a) Acquire and dispose movable and immovable property;
(b) Borrow; and
(c) Accept donations, bequests and gifts.
Article 99
The Treaty and the Protocols
This Treaty and the Protocols shall form an integral
part of the OAU Charter.
Article 100
Signature and Ratification
This Treaty, and the Protocols, shall be signed
and ratified by the High Contracting Parties in
accordance with their respective constitutional
procedures. The instruments of ratification shall
be deposited with the Secretary- General of the
OAU.
Article 101
Entry into Force
This Treaty shall enter into force thirty (30)
days after the deposit of the Instruments of ratification
by two-thirds of the Member States of the OAU.
Article 102
Accession and Admission
1. Any Member State of the OAU may notify the Secretary-General
of its intention to accede to this Treaty.
2. The Secretary-General shall, upon receipt of
such notification, transmit copies thereof to all
Member States. Admission shall be decided by a simple
majority of Member States which shall transmit their
votes to the Secretary-General. Upon receipt of
the required number of votes, the Secretary-General
shall transmit the decision of admission to the
concerned Member State.
Article 103
Amendment and Revision of the Treaty
1. Any Member State may submit proposals for the
amendment or revision of this Treaty.
2. Proposals for amendment or revision shall be
submitted to the Secretary-General who shall transmit
the same to Member States within thirty (30) days
of receipt thereof at the Headquarters of the Community.
3. The Assembly, upon the advice of the Council,
shall examine these proposals at its next meeting
within a period of one year, following notification
of Member States in accordance with the provisions
of paragraph 2 of this Article.
4. Amendments or revisions shall be adopted by
the Assembly by consensus or, failing that, by a
two-thirds majority and submitted for ratification
by all Member States in accordance with their respective
constitutional procedures. They shall enter into
force thirty (30) days after the deposit of the
instruments of ratification by two-thirds of the
Member States with the Secretary-General of the
OAU.
Article 104
Withdrawal
1. Any Member State wishing to withdraw from the
Community shall notify by giving one-year notice
in writing, to the Secretary-General who shall inform
Member States thereof. Upon the expiration of such
a period, that Member State shall, if the notice
is not withdrawn, cease to be a Member of the Community.
2. During the period of one year referred to in
paragraph 1 of this Article, any Member State wishing
to withdraw from the Community shall comply with
the provisions of this Treaty and shall be bound
to discharge its obligations under this Treaty up
to the date of its withdrawal.
Article 105
Dissolution
The Assembly may decide to dissolve the Community
and determine the terms and conditions for sharing
of the latter's assets and liabilities.
Article 106
Depository of the Treaty
1. This Treaty, drawn up in four (4) original texts
in the Arabic, English, French and Portuguese languages,
all four (4) texts being equally authentic, shall
be deposited with the Secretary-General of the OAU
who shall transmit a certified true copy thereof
to the Government of each signatory State.
2. The Secretary-General shall notify Member States
of the dates of deposit of the instruments of ratification
or accession and shall upon the entry into force
of this Treaty register the same with the Secretariat
of the United Nations.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, WE, Heads of State and Government
of Member States of the Organisation of African
Unity have signed this Treaty.
Done at Abuja, Nigeria on the Third of June
Nineteen Hundred and Ninety One.
