ABSTRACT
This chapter is concerned with the ways in which the Organization of African Unity (OAU) has sought to manage, in the widest sense, Africa’s political order. It focuses on inter-state disputes, and outlines the various ways, mechanisms and strategies with which the Organization is active in the field of conflict management. The chapter shows that the OAU’s rationale in the management of Africa’s political order has also been part and parcel of the objective to enhance the continent’s influence in world politics. Thus, in extra-African fora as the UN the OAU’s African Group tries to influence decision-making on all issues that are important to Africa. Since the late 1970s various reform proposals have been launched in order to increase the effectiveness of the OAU in the management of conflicts. In the course of its existence the OAU has introduced several norms with which it tries to manage Africa’s political order.
