The economic problems of the 1970s and 1980s led African countries to revert to the economic policies of market fundamentalism being expounded by conventional free market institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF). But these were the bases of the colonial economic policies that had left Africa in the dependent economic position it was in at independence. Hence, there is no wonder that since the implementation of structural adjustment policies in Africa, poverty on the continent became more widespread and deepened. As dissatisfactions with the IMF structural adjustments became widespread, African countries renewed their determination for regional and continental integration with greater vigor. There was realization that African integration is a strategy for African development. It is intended not to follow development but to precede it; or both integration and industrialization must be pursued simultaneously. The argument that each country should solve its problems before entering into integration is spurious because lack of capacity is an integral part of the failure to develop. If each country could achieve its development on its own, then why integrate?
The intensifcation of efforts towards regional integration resulted in the adoption of the Lagos Plan of Action by the African Heads of State and Government in 1980. This step culminated in the signing of the Abuja Treaty of 1991 promulgating the African Economic Community (AEC), which came into effect in 1994. The agreement to establish the AEC Free Trade Area was signed in Kigali in March 2018. However, the full establishment of the AEC is to be phased out in six stages4 (Yongo-Bure 2011). The establishment of a continent-wide common market, the African Common Market (ACM), is aimed at realization by 2023. The continent-wide economic and monetary union is to be achieved by the end of 2028. The transitional period, during which all these structures are to be established, would end by 2034 at the latest.
But as much as African leaders seem to appreciate the importance of collective African self-reliance, their political rhetoric on African integration has so far not been accompanied by commensurate results. Consequently, multiple regional groupings have been established all over the continent, many of which have overlapping memberships. This duplication and overlapping of membership in the regional integration blocs in Africa has hampered the progress of regional integration instead of facilitating it, thereby perpetuating Africa’s vulnerability to global economic forces.5
Many countries have joined a number of groupings for political and strategic reasons. Economic reasons rank low. Duplication of membership hinders integration programs related to trade facilitation and market integration. Lack of harmonized market integration schemes means that each regional economic community has its own rules of origin or its own certifcation process. This limits trade between communities. The duplication and overlapping of membership contribute to the underfunding of the communities as members fnd it diffcult to pay all their dues to multiple communities. There is also the problem of adequately staffng the many RECs with their various levels of technical needs. Declarations by the African Summit of July 2007 indicated a strong desire to rationalize the existing RECs and reflect a decision not to recognize more RECs than the eight then existing as the main pillars of the AEC (UNECA, Vol. 3: 30).
The acceleration of African regional and continental integration since the signing of the Abuja Treaty is a clear manifestation of African leaders’ recognition of the need for larger economic units in the continent to achieve via ble development in the current global economic environment. However, the processes of realizing the RECs and the AEC will be slow and long. In the meanwhile, technological changes will not wait for African integration. Such a situation will perpetuate Africa’s follower status in regard to the challenges of globalization. For Africans to have an impact and infuence on the direction of globalization, and thus on the continent’s destiny, African countries must internalize the processes of technological progress within a shorter time frame. The greater challenge of internalizing substantial technological changes within Africa can be undertaken by the large African countries that should be able to muster the political leadership to turn their potentials into regional development poles in the continent. Development emanating from these regional poles (or "African industrial workshops") will diffuse faster to the rest of the continent, thus enabling the smaller economies to transform faster than when depending on economic diffusion from outside the continent.