The growing agency of the African Union in the international system

Revista CIDOB d'Afers Internacionals_139
Afers 139
Publication date: 04/2025
Author:
Jerónimo Delgado-Caicedo and Guilherme Ziebell de Oliveira
Download PDF
Back to Index: The impact of the Global South on the international system

Jerónimo Delgado-Caicedo, profesor, investigador y coordinador del Observatorio de Análisis de los Sistemas Internacionales (OASIS), Universidad Externado de Colombia (Bogotá). jeronimo.delgado@uexternado.edu.co. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9449-8281 

Guilherme Ziebell de Oliveira, profesor adjunto, Departamento de Economía y Relaciones Internacionales, Universidad Federal de Río Grande del Sur (Porto Alegre, Brasil). guilherme.ziebell@ufrgs.br. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0118-6279 

This paper explores the growing agency of the African Union (AU) in the international system and answers the question of how Africa has succeeded in consolidating itself as a key player in the global power hierarchy in the 21st century. It posits the hypothesis that the continent’s recent success is due to three processes: (a) an increase in its power resources thanks to recent processes of stabilisation, peacemaking and development; (b) the consolidation of Africa as a significant player from the Global South; and (c) the creation of the AU as a regional political bloc with international influence. These three phenomena, coordinated by the AU, have allowed the continent to steadily position itself at the heart of current global geopolitical transformations. The paper demonstrates how the organisation has managed to utilise its agency to increase its power and enhance its international reach.

Keywords: African Union, agency, Africa, international reach, power, international system, Global South

How to cite this article: Delgado-Caicedo, Jerónimo y Ziebell de Oliveira, Guilherme. «La creciente agencia de la Unión Africana en el sistema internacional». Revista CIDOB d’Afers Internacionals, n.º 139 (abril de 2025), p. 99-120. DOI: doi.org/10.24241/rcai.2025.139.1.99

Revista CIDOB d’Afers Internacionals, nº 139, p. 99-120
Quadrimestral (January-April 2025)
ISSN:1133-6595 | E-ISSN:2013-035X
DOI: doi.org/10.24241/rcai.2025.139.1.99

Reception date: 16.09.24  ;  Acceptance date:  15.01.25

>> The full text articles of this issue are available only in Spanish language