regional integration

Syllable breakdown

Dictionary meaning

the process through which neighbouring countries progressively reduce barriers to the movement of goods, services, capital, and people, develop common institutions, and in some cases harmonise policies across a widening range of domains; in Africa, regional integration has been pursued through bodies including the Economic Community of West African States, the East African Community, the Southern African Development Community, and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, with varying degrees of success; the African Union's Agenda 2063 vision places continental integration at the centre of Africa's development strategy, with AfCFTA as its most ambitious recent manifestation; persistent challenges include infrastructure deficits, currency inconvertibility, political resistance to sovereignty pooling, and the legacy of colonial boundaries that divided coherent economic regions across multiple states