The History of African Integration – A Gradual Shift from Political To Economic Goals

Abstract

The process of political integration in Africa is progressing slowly, even though it was a priority stated by the African leaders ever since the early days of independence in the mid-20th century. In the field of economic integration, which has a much shorter history, the achievements, albeit insufficient compared to the stated objectives, are significantly more. The paper discusses the historic development of the ideas of regional integration in Africa and their implementation, presenting the defined by the author phases in the integration process. Special attention is paid on the multi-layer approach towards economic integration adopted for the creation of the African economic community.