ABSTRACT
Recent major changes in the regional and global economic-political situation have resulted in an increased interest in economic co-operation in the Indian Ocean region (IOR). Some such changes are viewed in the region as ‘negative’ and some as ‘positive’. An example of the former is the ‘Washington Consensus’ which has forced many lesser developed countries (LDCs) not only to accept the stringent austerity measures of the IMF’s Structural Adjustment Programmes, but also the unfavourable trading conditions set out in the GATT and WTO agreements. By contrast, the end of the Cold War and the failure of the United States to thereby achieve sole global superpower status have permitted the countries of the IOR to explore the possibility of regional economic cooperation.
