ABSTRACT
Promoting economic integration has emerged as a key priority in the reform strategies of most African countries over the past decade. Regional aid for trade can help underpin this regional economic integration process through enhancing competitiveness and helping plug local firms into regional production networks. African countries and the donor community are both affording greater priority to regional economic integration – including by allocating more funding for this purpose. Consequently, support for regional economic integration programmes is on the rise and reached USD 6 billion in 2014. Most of this financing supports the upgrading of infrastructure and building productive capacities. Less costly, but also important is the technical assistance donors provide to regional economic communities for building human and institutional capacities. This support is especially crucial in the context of the negotiations of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement. While regional aid for trade faces many practical implementation challenges, experience has shown that associated problems are surmountable with prioritisation on the part of policymakers, thorough planning and careful project formulation.
