ABSTRACT
There is strong and growing support for regional development and integration in Africa as a strategy for advancing its socioeconomic endeavors. The desire to integrate African economies both at the regional and continental level is shared among African governments and their international development partners such as the European Union (EU), United Nations agencies and the World Bank. The desire for integration dates back to the formation of the Organization of the African Union (OAU) in 1963. However, the objective gained further traction in 1991 with the signing of the Abuja Treaty creating the African Economic Community (AEC), which called for an African common market and monetary integration by 2028.
