Africa Day is the commemoration of the founding of the Organisation of African Unity. On 25th May 1963 leaders of 30 of the 32 independent African states signed a founding charter in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. In 1991, the Organisation of African Unity established the African Economic Community, and in 2002 it established its own successor, the African Union. The name and date of Africa Day has, however, been retained as a celebration of African unity.