Yet history has shown that national unity can exist alongside recognition of the diversity permeating a society. In fact, the participation of each individual and each group in the construction of a nation depends on the importance placed on the affirmation and development of that individual or group’s identity.
For the Alliance, unity cannot be equated with the denial of specific characteristics; it corresponds, rather, to their harmonious combination. Placing greater importance on the specific characteristics of identity, particularly with regard to local communities, has become one of the conditions of survival of the African continent in an increasingly globalised culture.