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New OAU head takes over

The new secretary-general of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), Amara Essy, an Ivorian, formally assumed leadership of the continental organisation in Addis Ababa on 17 September, the pro-Ethiopian government Walta Information Centre has reported. Essy, a former foreign minister and UN ambassador, will oversee the transformation of the OAU into the recently formed African Union. He has taken over from veteran diplomat Salim Ahmed Salim, who has been OAU secretary-general since 1989.

This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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