From Bandung Conference to the African Union: Continuity and Change in Global South Solidarity

This study examines the continuity and change in Global South solidarity from the 1955 Bandung Conference to the establishment and evolution of the African Union. The central research problem of the study is whether the political and ideological principles articulated at Bandung have persisted merely at a declaratory level or have been substantively transformed through African regional institutions over time. Methodologically, the study employs qualitative content and document analysis, drawing on constitutive acts, policy frameworks, and official institutional texts, alongside a comprehensive review of the relevant academic literature. The scope of the study encompasses the 1955 Bandung Conference, the Organization of African Unity (OAU), and the African Union (AU), while its main limitation lies in its focus on institutional and ideational dimensions rather than policy implementation outcomes. The findings indicate that core principles such as anti-imperialism, sovereignty, and solidarity have been maintained, while simultaneously being reinterpreted through expanded institutional intervention, governance practices, and global agency within the AU framework. The study contributes to the literature by demonstrating that the AU represents not a departure from the 1955 Bandung spirit but its contemporary and institutionalized rearticulation within the Global South.