The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of all 55 countries on the African continent, including the 6% of Egypt that is geographically in Asia. It was established on 26 May 2001 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and launched on 9 July 2002 in South Africa, with the aim of replacing the Organisation of African Unity (OAU).Founder of AU is Muammar Gaddafi. The most important decisions of the AU are made by the Assembly of the African Union, a semi-annual meeting of the heads of state and government of its member states. The AU's secretariat, the African Union Commission, is based in Addis Ababa.