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25-455: It is bordered by six other wilayas: to the west by Tindouf , to the northwest by Béni Abbès , to the north by Timimoun , to the east by In Salah , to the southeast by Tamanrasset , To the south by Bordj Badji Mokhtar , and to the southwest by Mauritania . Adrar is composed of three natural and cultural regions: Touat (Adrar, Zaouiet Kounta ), Gourara ( Aougrout , Timimoune ) and Tidikelt ( Aoulef ), and 299 ksour . The province

50-652: A process beginning in 1969 and finalized during the OAU summit in Rabat in 1972, Morocco recognized the border with Algeria, in exchange for joint exploitation of the iron ore in Tindouf. However, parts of Moroccan society and some nationalist political parties still refer to the Tindouf area as historically Moroccan territory, and the Moroccan parliament has still not ratified the border recognition. From 1974, refugees from

75-408: Is further divided into two communes or municipalities: Tindouf and Oum El Assel . It is one of only 3 provinces in the country which has only one daïra and along with Bordj Baji Mokhtar Province , Djanet Province , In Guezzam Province also has the fewest communes with just 2. OAU The Organisation of African Unity ( OAU ; French : Organisation de l'unité africaine , OUA)

100-607: The Algerian military , and is strategically important due to its proximity to the Moroccan border, and its location at a four-country border crossing. From independence in 1956, the Kingdom of Morocco claimed the Tindouf area and western Algeria as part of Morocco. These claims are based on the allegations that until 1952, Tindouf was part of French Morocco and was administratively attached to Agadir , and promises made by parts of

125-557: The 1970s, the OAU was powerless to stop them. The Organisation was praised by Ghanaian former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan for bringing Africans together. Nevertheless, critics argue that, in its 39 years of existence, the OAU did little to protect the rights and liberties of African citizens from their own political leaders, often dubbing it as a "Dictators' Club" or "Dictators' Trade Union". The OAU was, however, successful in some respects. Many of its members were members of

150-548: The Algerian underground during that country's war for independence. After Algeria's independence in 1962, Morocco's claim to Tindouf was not accepted by the new Algerian republic. This led to the 1963 Sand war , fought along the Moroccan-Algerian border in the Tindouf region, and also involving Béchar Province and Tlemcen Province , after Morocco claimed the area as its own following Algerian independence. In

175-511: The Cold War. The OAU had other aims, too: Soon after achieving independence, a number of African states expressed a growing desire for more unity within the continent. Not everyone was agreed on how this unity could be achieved, however, and two opinionated groups emerged in this respect: Some of the initial discussions took place at Sanniquellie , Liberia. The dispute was eventually resolved when Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie I invited

200-711: The OAU and replaced it with the African Union (AU), its immediate successor, which upholds many of the founding principles of the OAU. The inception of the OAU's establishment was the Sanniquellie Pledge at the First West African Summit Conference held in Sanniquellie , Liberia on 15–19 July 1959. President Tubman of Liberia hosted President Touré of Guinea , and Prime Minister Nkrumah of Ghana , and

225-625: The Sahrawi refugee camps. Despite the barren landscape, Tindouf is a resource-rich province, with important quantities of iron ore located in the Gara Djebilet area close to the border with Mauritania . Prior to Algerian independence, the area served as a strongpoint of several tribes of the nomadic Reguibat confederation. During the Zayyanid period, the Draa region which surrounds

250-820: The South African government, and South African aircraft were prohibited from flying over the rest of the continent. The UN was convinced by the OAU to expel South Africa from bodies such as the World Health Organization . The OAU also worked with the UN to ease refugee problems. It set up the African Development Bank for economic projects intended to make Africa financially stronger. Although all African countries eventually won their independence , it remained difficult for them to become totally independent of their former colonisers. There

275-666: The Tindouf province was governed by a sheikh of the Zayyanids. The town of Tindouf was rebuilt near an isolated Saharan oasis in 1852 by members of the Tajakant tribe , but sacked and destroyed by the Reguibat tribe in 1895. It remained deserted until French troops led by colonel Trinquet arrived in the area in 1934 and attached the region to the French Algeria territory. The province houses army and airforce bases for

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300-462: The UN, too, and they stood together within the latter organisation to safeguard African interests – especially in respect of lingering colonialism. Its pursuit of African unity, therefore, was in some ways successful. Total unity was difficult to achieve, however, as the OAU was largely divided. The former French colonies, still dependent on France , had formed the Monrovia Group , and there

325-593: The contested Spanish Sahara started arriving to the Tindouf area, following an earlier wave from the 1958 unrest . This turned into a major exodus from 1975 onwards, when Morocco and Mauritania seized control of what was then called Western Sahara , and Algeria retaliated by allowing the Polisario Front , a nationalist Sahrawi movement, to use the area as its main base. Sahrawi refugee camps were established in Tindouf in 1975-6, such as Smara refugee camp and El Aaiun refugee camp . The Polisario remains in

350-517: The leading Gambian nationalists and Pan-Africanists at the time – Alieu Ebrima Cham Joof delivered a speech in front of the member states, in which he said: The OAU had the following primary aims: A Liberation Committee was established to aid independence movements and look after the interests of already-independent states. The OAU also aimed to stay neutral in terms of global politics, which would prevent them from being controlled once more by outside forces – an especial danger with

375-466: The list of districts in the province of Adrar and all the communes in each district. Tindouf Province Tindouf , also written Tinduf ( Arabic : ولاية تندوف ), is the westernmost province of Algeria , having a population of 58,193 as of the 2008 census (not including the Sahrawi refugees at the Sahrawi refugee camps ). Its population in reality could be as high as 160,000 because of

400-557: The organization with no means to enforce its decisions. It was also unwilling to become involved in the internal affairs of member nations, prompting some critics to claim the OAU as a forum for rhetoric, not action. Recognizing this, in September 1999 the OAU issued the Sirte Declaration , calling for a new body to take its place. On 9 July 2002, the OAU's Chairman , South African President Thabo Mbeki , formally dissolved

425-405: The province, running the large refugee camps located south of Tindouf city . The European Commission refers to the Sahrawi refugees as the "forgotten refugees". The province was created from Béchar Province in 1984. The province contains one daïra ( district ), Tindouf , which is coextensive with the province. The province and daïra has a population of 58,193 inhabitants. The daira

450-660: The three pledged to work together for the formation of a "Community of Independent African States". The OAU was founded in May 1963 in Addis Ababa , Ethiopia , by 32 African states with the main aim of bringing the African nations together and resolve the issues within the continent. Its first ever conference was held on 1 May 1963 in Addis Ababa. At that conference, the late Gambian historian – and one of

475-576: The two groups to Addis Ababa , where the OAU and its headquarters were subsequently established. The Charter of the Organisation was signed by 32 independent African states. At the time of the OAU's disbanding, 53 out of the 54 African states were members; Morocco left on 12 November 1984 following the admission of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic as the government of Western Sahara in 1982. The organisation

500-674: Was a further split between those that supported the United States and those that supported the USSR in the Cold War of ideologies. The pro- Socialist faction was led by Ghana's Kwame Nkrumah , while Félix Houphouët-Boigny of the Ivory Coast led the pro- capitalists . Because of these divisions, it was difficult for the OAU to take action against states involved in internal conflicts because it could rarely reach an agreement on what

525-524: Was an African intergovernmental organization established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa , Ethiopia , with 33 signatory governments. Some of the key aims of the OAU were to encourage political and economic integration among member states, and to eradicate colonialism and neo-colonialism from the African continent . The absence of an armed force like the United Nations peacekeepers left

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550-474: Was created from parts of the Oasis Province  [ fr ] and Saoura Province  [ fr ] in 1974. On 26 November 2019, Adrar was split into 3 provinces: Timimoun, Adrar, and Bordj Badji Mokhtar. The province of Adrar is located in south-west Algeria . The province comprises 7 districts ( daïras ) and 18 communes or municipalities ( baladiyahs ) The following table shows

575-467: Was often continued reliance on the former colonial powers for economic aid, which often came with strings attached: loans had to be paid back at high interest-rates, and goods had to be sold to the aiders at low rates. The US and Soviet Union intervened in post-colonial Africa in pursuit of their own objectives. Help was sometimes provided in the form of technology and aid-workers. Despite the fight to keep "Westerners" (colonialists) out of African affairs,

600-520: Was to be done. The OAU did play a pivotal role in eradicating colonialism and white minority rule in Africa. It gave weapons, training and military bases to rebel groups fighting white minority and colonial rule. Groups such as the ANC and PAC, fighting apartheid , and ZANU and ZAPU , fighting to topple the government of Rhodesia , were aided in their endeavours by the OAU. African harbours were closed to

625-577: Was widely derided as a bureaucratic "talking shop" with little power. It struggled to enforce its decisions, and its lack of armed force made intervention exceedingly difficult. Civil wars in Nigeria and Angola continued unabated for years, and the OAU could do nothing to stop them. The policy of non-interference in the affairs of member states also limited the effectiveness of the OAU. Thus, when human rights were violated, as in Uganda under Idi Amin in

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