The Quest for Unity: An Appraisal of Regional Integration in Africa

Regional integration was identified many years ago as being critical to Africa’s quest to overcome its colonially induced underdevelopment. To encourage this, several potentially significant programmes or projects have been stillborn or inadequately implemented. A network of relatively stable Regional Economic Communities (RECs) has been established, and one of its most ambitious initiatives - the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) - is now being ’operationalised’. Written in the context of a global economy emerged in stagflation - a combination of stagnation and inflation - this book provides a deeper insight into pertinent conceptual and theoretical issues of vital importance to Africa’s development. It also presents case studies of several of the RECs, as well as the processes involved in constructing the AfCFTA.

The subject matter of this book includes -

• African lingua franca and African knowledge systems
• The African Centres for Disease Control and Prevention
• Regional integration: Mission impossible?
• Regional electricity integration in Africa

Print edition not for sale in Sub Saharan Africa

Sizo Nkala is Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Johannesburg’s Centre for Africa-China Studies, where he produces academic publications, manages commissioned research projects, organizes seminars and interacts with the media. He holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. His research interests include China-Africa relations in the technology, media and economic spheres, African political economy, immigration and global politics.

David Monyae is Associate Professor of Political Science and International Relations at the University of Johannesburg, and Co-Director of the Centre for Africa-China Studies. Professor Monyae is an international relations and foreign policy expert, with a PhD in International Relations from the University of the Witwatersrand. He previously served as Section Manager: International Relations Policy Analysis at the South African Parliament, providing strategic management, parliamentary foreign policy formulation, and monitoring and analysis services.