Assessment of regional integration progress in the East African community

• Main Author: Kaisi, Hosi John
• Format: Others
• Language: en
• Published: 2014
• Subjects: Regionalism; East Africa
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net10539/13607

Thesis (M.M. (Public Policy))--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, Graduate School of Public and Development Management, 2013. === There have been integration efforts in Africa for the last four decades, similar to other continental efforts across the globe. Learning from the past failures of regional integration efforts in Africa, in the late 1960s and 1970s, the East African Community partner states came up with a new approach towards integrating the region, that is, people centered and private sector driven integration. The regional integration projects and programmes remain the top priority among the EAC partner states as the means to achieve sustainable development in the region. Nevertheless there are indications that EAC partner states are over ambitious in advancing regional integration. The major challenges of the EAC integration span issues such as policy coordination and harmonization, infrastructure development and intra-regional trade expansion, protocols and policy implementation, labour mobility. The purpose of the study was to appraise the progress of regional integration protocols and policies implementation at the national level of the EAC partner states. The study assessed the extent of regional cooperation and integration success since the EAC was revived in 1999, up to 2010, in three broad areas: (i) customs union, (ii) community external relations, and (iii) common market. The research used exploratory case study approach. The main findings of the research were that: (i) the customs union is a difficult stage for partner states to implement; (ii) Tanzania has argued that land matters are not part in the common market discussion; and (iii) the EAC partner states are skeptical of the EU’s motives in economic partnership agreement negotiations. The study also found that the EU’s motives are to obtain preferential trade arrangements both in the EAC and other emerging economies. The study recommends initiatives to create an enabling environment for the greater mutual understanding and substantial degree of trust on the scope of cooperation agreed upon, among the partner states as building for further integration in the region.