Regionalism, Trade and Development in Africa
Regionalism, Trade and Development in Africa
(RECs), has been a dominant feature in the development of trade policy since the end of
the Second World War. Apart from the tariff reductions negotiated through the General
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and, since 1995, under the World Trade
Organization (WTO), the movement towards economic integration in Western Europe,
Latin America, Africa, North America and Asia has been the most important
development affecting the level and structure of international trade in the post World War
II period. Many believe that integration of the economic (and ultimately political)
systems of nation states is a way of bringing about not only rapid economic growth but
also lasting peace through increased trade.
Jacob Viner’s seminal work on customs union theory titled The Customs Union Issue,
which was published in 1950, has stimulated a lot of intellectual research and interest in
customs unions. However, in practical terms, the European attempt at economic
integration, legalized by the Treaty of Rome in 1957, has been an inspiration and
stimulus to other regions to engage in economic integration. The success of the European
Union (EU), culminating in the single market in 1992 and a single currency in 1999, has
been the envy of other regions. By 1998, a total of 98 regional integration schemes or
agreements were identified but none had developed to the level of the EU.
The concept of international economic integration is central to the issue of regionalism
and regional economic communities. According to Hine (1994), “international economic
integration” describes both a state of affairs and a process. As a state, international
economic integration refers to a fusion of formerly separate national economies while as a process it signifies the gradual elimination of economic frontiers between countries.
Economic frontiers may be defined as any demarcation over which mobility of goods,
services and factors of production are relatively low. Thus, following Iyoha (2004), we
may postulate that international economic integration is the attempt by the governments
of 2 or more countries to link together their economies through the removal of economic
frontiers under specific integration schemes.
African Development Bank
Economic Research Working Paper Series
Enhancing Africa’s Trade: From Marginalization
to an Export-Led Approach to Development
Milton A. Iyoha
Professor, Department of Economics & Statistics
University of Benin, Nigeria
Economic Research Working Paper
No 77 (August 2005)
Regionalism Trade and Development in Africa - To learn more about this author, visit African Development Bank's Website.
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Regional co-operation, using regional trade groupings or regional economic communities
(RECs), has been a dominant feature in the development of trade policy since the end of
the Second World War. Apart from the tariff reductions negotiated through the General
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and, since 1995, under the World Trade
Organization (WTO), the movement towards economic integration in Western Europe,
Latin America, Africa, North America and Asia has been the most important
development affecting the level and structure of international trade in the post World War
II period. Many believe that integration of the economic (and ultimately political)
systems of nation states is a way of bringing about not only rapid economic growth but
also lasting peace through increased trade.
Jacob Viner’s seminal work on customs union theory titled The Customs Union Issue,
which was published in 1950, has stimulated a lot of intellectual research and interest in
customs unions. However, in practical terms, the European attempt at economic
integration, legalized by the Treaty of Rome in 1957, has been an inspiration and
stimulus to other regions to engage in economic integration. The success of the European
Union (EU), culminating in the single market in 1992 and a single currency in 1999, has
been the envy of other regions. By 1998, a total of 98 regional integration schemes or
agreements were identified but none had developed to the level of the EU.
The concept of international economic integration is central to the issue of regionalism
and regional economic communities. According to Hine (1994), “international economic
integration” describes both a state of affairs and a process. As a state, international
economic integration refers to a fusion of formerly separate national economies while as a process it signifies the gradual elimination of economic frontiers between countries.
Economic frontiers may be defined as any demarcation over which mobility of goods,
services and factors of production are relatively low. Thus, following Iyoha (2004), we
may postulate that international economic integration is the attempt by the governments
of 2 or more countries to link together their economies through the removal of economic
frontiers under specific integration schemes.
African Development Bank
Economic Research Working Paper Series
Enhancing Africa’s Trade: From Marginalization
to an Export-Led Approach to Development
Milton A. Iyoha
Professor, Department of Economics & Statistics
University of Benin, Nigeria
Economic Research Working Paper
No 77 (August 2005)
Regionalism Trade and Development in Africa - To learn more about this author, visit African Development Bank's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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