Flag of the African Union
What the flag looks like
A green field with a green map of Africa in the center, set in a burst of white rays and ringed by small gold five-pointed stars.
What it means
Green stands for Africa's hopes, gold for its wealth and bright future, white for purity, and the stars for the member states; the map is drawn without borders as a sign of unity.
How to remember it
The African Union
puts the whole continent on its flag: a borderless map of Africa glowing with white sunrays on green, inside a ring of gold stars.
Fun facts
- The African Union replaced the Organisation of African Unity, which had been founded in Addis Ababa in 1963.
- It is one of the few flags to show a map, along with those of Cyprus and Kosovo.
African Union at a glance
- Founded
- 2002
- Members
- 55 states
- Headquarters
- Addis Ababa
- Headquarters
- Addis Ababa
- Region
- Founded 2002
- Languages
- Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Swahili
- Flag adopted
- 2010