ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book details Africa's international relations from a range of perspectives from authors based within the continent as well as outside the continent. It proposes to fill this analytical gap by engaging with a wide range of issues on which the African continent, and its constituent states, has expressed a position or advocated a set of specific policies. The book discusses the evolution of Africa's international relations. It assesses how the African Union's role as an international actor is complicated by the difficulty of promoting consensus among African states and then maintaining that consensus in the face of often divergent national interests. The book explores a selection of issues that the AU has served as a rallying vehicle for Africa interests. It illustrates how the AU has adopted a range of policy frameworks and operationalized institutions to govern its continental and international relations.
