Observatory on Regional Integration in Africa
The EAC has been carrying out comprehensive economic reforms since the 1990s in order to stimulate the growth of the private sector. One such reform has been the gradual liberalization of financial sectors and capital account mobility in order to enhance macroeconomic harmonization. Consequently, EAC member States have moved towards adopting more flexible exchange rate mechanisms.
Given the institutional foundations of the East African cooperation, some member States already traded with each other under the Preferential Trade Area for Eastern and Southern Africa. The trade and market integration processes are described under the provisions of article 5 of the Treaty Establishing EAC, stating that a Customs Union followed by a Common Market and a final culmination into an EAC Political Federation are the gradual steps of integration in the Community.
In conformity with the objectives stated in article 3 of the Treaty Establishing COMESA, member States have agreed to adhere to a wide number of principles. These principles include: inter-State cooperation, harmonization of policies and programmes among the member States and the active cooperation between neighbouring countries, and the promotion of a peaceful environment as a pre-requisite for their economic development.
The strengthening of peace, security, stability and good governance are stated as one of its aims and objectives in article 3(d) of the Treaty Establishing COMESA. The fourth summit of the COMESA Authority that was held in Nairobi, Kenya in May 1999 mandated Ministers of Foreign Affairs of COMESA member States to meet annually to deliberate on matters regarding the promotion of peace, security and stability in the regional economic community.
COMESA has adopted a number of treaties and protocols related to macroeconomic policy convergence to further benefit from deepened integration. In 1992, The Authority of Heads of State and Government adopted the COMESA Monetary Cooperation Programme towards the establishment of a Monetary Union in the year 2025. The date for the Achievement of the Monetary Union was later changed to 2018 by the COMESA Council of Ministers in 2006.
Trade and market integration has had a central role in the evolvement of COMESA given its background as a Preferential Trade Area (PTA) for Eastern and Southern Africa. The previous foundation has therefore supported the establishment of institutions that foster trade liberalization and trade facilitation programmes.
CEN-SAD Community is the region where instability is the most endemic in Africa. In effect, due to its geographical positioning between Western Europe, the Sahel-Saharan space has long been subject to a strong migratory turbulence. In addition to this, it has become the place of most of intra-African conflicts and the sanctuary of all of the continent’s jihadist movements. Thus, peace, security and stability have become essential topics within the Community.
The overall objective of CEN-SAD is to establish an Economic Union with financial and macroeconomic convergence as articulated in article 1 of the Treaty Establishing CEN-SAD. Yet, weak efforts to fulfil the proposed objective have been made in the CEN-SAD configuration insofar as promoting interregional economic community harmonization of macroeconomic and financial policies, and institutional cooperation of such matters.