The 9,000-strong African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS), which was previously responsible for peacekeeping, had completely merged into this new force by 31 December 2007.

Possibly arising from this, when the UNAMID mandate was renewed for a further 12 months by the UN Security Council on 29 June 2017, significant reductions in deployed personnel were announced.

UNAMID, as a joint mission, has a civilian head appointed by both the UN Secretary General and AU Commission Chairman.

[16] On 3 April 2017 it was announced that Jeremiah Nyamane Kingsley Mamabolo of South Africa had been appointed as Joint Special Representative and Head of the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur.

[17] The USAF's 786th Air Expeditionary Squadron helped arrange airlift into Darfur for the 55th Battalion of the Rwandan Army to join UNAMID in 2007.

[31] The preceding African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) was organised in a number of Sectors, each under the command of a Colonel.

[15] On 12 August 2007, Alpha Oumar Konare, chairman of the AU, announced that UNAMID was likely to be an all-African peacekeeping force.

[36][37] As of 30 June 2013[update], the total number of personnel in the mission was 19,735:[38][39] Nigeria: 37 Rwanda: 30 Ethiopia: 26 Sudan: 25 Senegal: 16 Tanzania: 14 Burkina Faso: 13 Sierra Leone: 13 Egypt: 8 South Africa: 8 Gambia: 7 Bangladesh: 6 Jordan: 4 Nepal: 4 Uganda: 4 Zambia: 4 Ghana: 3 Kenya: 3 Barbados: 1 Fiji: 1 Liberia: 1 Malawi: 1 Malaysia: 1 Morocco: 1 Pakistan: 1 Russian Federation: 1 Thailand: 1 Togo: 1 Yemen: 1