Richard, G. (2009) Regional integration and Africa's development trajectory: meta-theories, expectations and reality. Third World Quarterly, 30 (4). pp. 701-721.
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Abstract
Regional integration remains an integral part of Africa's development strategy and has underpinned most pan-African development policies for the past 50 years. This paper explores the issue of regional integration in the context of 'development' theory and the neo-patrimonial state system in Africa. A central contention of the paper is that Western, Euro-centric conceptions of regionalism, particularly those centred on the market integration approach, have promoted a very biased understanding of regional integration in many parts of the developing world. Using southern Africa as an exemplar case study, the paper argues that the various meta-theories focused on explaining the political economy of regionalism, often closely allied to a development theory paradigm, fail to account for the nature, character and evolution of regional integration. Regional integration in sub-Saharan Africa has been conceived and analysed in the light of the market-led approach, modernity and development. Thus far, it is has failed. This paper therefore explores why market-led regional integration has failed and why, for the foreseeable future, it will continue to do so
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Author Affiliation: | Faculty of Science, University of Plymouth, Drake Circus, Plymouth, UK |
| Subjects: | Agricultural Engineering > Mechanization |
| Divisions: | General |
| Depositing User: | Ms K Syamalamba |
| Date Deposited: | 16 May 2012 09:14 |
| Last Modified: | 16 May 2012 09:14 |
| Official URL: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01436590902867136 |
| URI: | http://eprints.icrisat.ac.in/id/eprint/5380 |
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