Regional Integration Observatory

The Observatory concentrates on the sectors that are usually focused on by Regional Economic Community(REC) treaties and protocols. Usually within a REC, not every treaty covers all sectors explicitly or thoroughly, however the generic alignment to the 4 pillars identified for Regional Integration is noticeable within the treaties and protocols of the major RECs that are pillars of the African Economic Community.

The 8 sectors focused on are (i) Trade (ii) Money and Finance (iii) Transport (iv)Communications (v) Energy (vi) Agriculture (vii) Manufacturing (viii) Human development and Labour Markets

These 8 sectors can all be found to be embedded within the 4 pillars required to forward the Regional Integration agenda so as to achieve the African Economic Community.

                      • Trade and Market Integration

                      • Macroeconomic Policy Convergence, Financial and Monetary Integration

                      • Peace, Security and Stability

The Observatory’s  furrowed focus aims at analysing the 4 pillars of Regional Integration within REC and other Institutional/Organisational profile spaces whereby background information, management structure, major achievements, short and long-term goals as well as average growth of Integration Indices, can be articulated in a single workspace with focal points having administrative rights and privileges.

This REC-centric approach encourages focal point participation for the RECs so as to update or maintain their respective REC profiles.

African Member States'  Ratification of Treaties and Protocols

African member states' ratification of Regional Economic Community treaties and protocols is usually the first step towards regional integration efforts. Treaty obligations dictate that the decision to sign a treaty is a legally binding instrument, that creates rights and imposes obligations on the states that are parties to the treaty. These obligations usually override national rules including pre-existing agreements. A fundamental rule in international law of treaties is the 'maxim pacta sunt servanda’  set out in the Vienna Convention. Under this rule ‘Every treaty is binding upon the parties and must be performed in good faith.’...

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"...these organizations [RECs] should not be perceived as mechanisms for defending certain established interest groups. Rather, they should be seen as pushing for openness to the rest of the world."

- Alassane D. Ouattara,

Publications and Deliverables on Regional Integration in Africa

 Featured access to a number of  books, journals, periodicals, and reports on Regional Integration efforts in Africa. Of particular note is the Assessment of Regional Integration in Africa (ARIA) series which is one of the flagship publications of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and  Africa Union's KeyStats contains key statistics on African Integration.  Other featured publications come from a range of sources from civili society organisations' featured white papers to academia published theses....Read more   |   
                                                                                                                                                                            

Regional Economic Communities and Intergovernmental Organisations in Africa

A regional integration arrangement is a preferential (usually reciprocal) agreement among countries that reduces barriers to economic and noneconomic transactions. Africa's current integration landscape contains an array of Regional Economic Communities, including 8 considered to be the building blocks of the African Economic Community.  These 8 are namely: CENSAD, COMESA, EAC, ECCAS, ECOWAS, IGAD, SADC and UMA.

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