Ethiopia hopes that its capital, Addis Ababa, will become the capital of a future African political union, similar to the European Union, news reports said on Friday. The reports, quoting Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, said he had raised the issue at the end of the 36th summit of the OAU in Lome, Togo. The OAU has its headquarters in Ethiopia, and Addis Ababa is also home to the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the African offices of the International Francophone Organisation (OIF). An act of union would have to be ratified by the parliaments of at least two-thirds of Africa’s 53 nations. AFP quoted African diplomats at the Togo summit as saying that ratification of such a text could lead to the disappearance of the OAU within a year.
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