The Changing Face of African Unity: Finding Solutions in Darfur and Beyond

H.E. Salim A. Salim, former Secretary-General of the Organization of African Union (OAU) discussed the organization's successor, the African Union (AU), and its newest initiatives in the troubled region of Darfur at a Director's Forum at the Woodrow Wilson International Center. In his new role as the head of the African Union mediation team working on the Darfur peace talks, Salim discussed the changing and increasing role that the African Union is playing in the continent's affairs, including its most recent intervention and mediation of the crisis in Darfur. In his introduction, Howard Wolpe observed that the civil war in Southern Sudan, one of Africa's oldest and deadliest conflicts, required consistent diplomatic and financial support, and should be a priority for the international community, with the necessary coordination of peace efforts.