African Union Migration Policies : A route to African Anity?

Using Diop's theory of Cultural Identity, this paper discusses the African Union's (AU) Common Position on Migration and Development and the Protocol to the Treaty Establishing the African Economic Community relating to Free Movement of Persons, Right of Residence and Right of Establishment. The paper argues that, although these policies try to achieve the vision of an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, they ignore fundamental issues such as creating a common African identity and an African consciousness. Unless an African consciousness or an African state of mind is cultivated, these policies are not likely to succeed. The paper proposes that the education systems of African states must consciously inculcate Pan-African values and teach an Afrocentric history in order to create a common African historical consciousness and argues that the AU must use indigenous African languages as official languages in order to show that it is serious about promoting Pan- African values.