ABSTRACT
In order to understand the impact of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) regime on the structures of African politics, in terms of its institutions, norms and decision-making procedures, this chapter provides insight in the internal make-up and functioning of the Organization. It outlines the OAU’s structures and organizational evolution so as to situate its most important organs in their proper institutional perspective. The chapter discusses the structure and functioning of the General Secretariat, and focuses on how these functionaries experience their work and position in the Organization, based on interviews that were conducted with OAU officials for this purpose. The Organization’s financial predicaments and some of the problems facing the Secretariat are put into sharper relief with the help of the concept of collective or public goods and the related free rider dilemma. The chapter analyses the role of the OAU’s major policy organs, which focuses on the nature and structures of the process of decision-making.
