Abstract
The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) was established with a view to achieve sustainable development through progressive realization of integration, begin with preferential trade area then becoming a common market and finally transforming into economic community. In COMESA, member states have been obligated to establish a customs union, abolish all non-tariff barriers, and determine a common external tariff and follow common standards of custom procedures. Among those commitments, FTA is established to facilitate regional integration through zero customs tariffs on goods traded among the Member States. The study has found that, less diversity in trade, overlapped memberships, heterogeneity of the economy, loss of import-export tax revenue, lack of political commitment, loss of national sovereignty, poor private sector participation, and poor infrastructure were identified as challenge to achieve the objective of COMESA. Therefore, states needs to take affirmative action’s including harmonizing their national trade policies in the manner of pre portrayed goal of COMESA-FTA arrangement. In doing so, it needs to venture the expected challenges of membership to COMESA-FTA and potential gains from trade liberalization. Keywords: COMESA, Regional Integration, Free Trade Area DOI : 10.7176/IAGS/76-02 Publication date :September 30 th 2019
Highlights
IntroductionRegional integration arrangements in Africa have a long history, dating back to the establishment of the South African Customs Union (SACU) in 1910 and the East African Community (EAC) in 1919.1 The arrangements became fashionable and high on the agenda of Africa's policy makers since independence in the 1950s.2 The interest towards the issue has been renewed to create strong regional economic integration (REI) mechanisms to promote economic growth, after the end of cold war and with the emergency of powerful trading blocs.3According to ECA, currently the African Union recognizes eight regional economic Communities as the building blocks of the African economic community, Africa has 14 major regional economic groupings. United Nations conference on trade and development disclosed that intra-Africa trade 2004 to 2006 is 8.68% which is by far low in comparison to intra trade between developing countries of Asia and America, 45.54% & 18.54% respectively. In a similar way to Africa, Intra-COMESA trade is in its infancy stage which is showing a significant progress currently.The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa traces its genesis to the mid-1960s.6 In 1965, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa convened a ministerial meeting of the newly independent states of Eastern and Southern Africa has considered the proposal for the establishment of a mechanism to the promote sub-regional economic integration. In 1978, at a meeting of Ministers of Trade, Finance and Planning in Lusaka, the creation of a sub-regional economic community was recommended, beginning with a sub-regional preferential trade area which would be gradually upgraded over a ten-year period to a common market until the community had been established
Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) has successfully established a Free Trade Area (FTA) on 31 October 2000 with the key aim being to facilitate regional integration through zero customs tariffs on goods traded among the Member States
COMESA intended in progressive realization of integration through preferential trade area arrangement to attain the economic community objectives set in the document
Summary
Regional integration arrangements in Africa have a long history, dating back to the establishment of the South African Customs Union (SACU) in 1910 and the East African Community (EAC) in 1919.1 The arrangements became fashionable and high on the agenda of Africa's policy makers since independence in the 1950s.2 The interest towards the issue has been renewed to create strong regional economic integration (REI) mechanisms to promote economic growth, after the end of cold war and with the emergency of powerful trading blocs.3According to ECA, currently the African Union recognizes eight regional economic Communities as the building blocks of the African economic community, Africa has 14 major regional economic groupings. United Nations conference on trade and development disclosed that intra-Africa trade 2004 to 2006 is 8.68% which is by far low in comparison to intra trade between developing countries of Asia and America, 45.54% & 18.54% respectively. In a similar way to Africa, Intra-COMESA trade is in its infancy stage which is showing a significant progress currently.The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa traces its genesis to the mid-1960s.6 In 1965, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa convened a ministerial meeting of the newly independent states of Eastern and Southern Africa has considered the proposal for the establishment of a mechanism to the promote sub-regional economic integration. In 1978, at a meeting of Ministers of Trade, Finance and Planning in Lusaka, the creation of a sub-regional economic community was recommended, beginning with a sub-regional preferential trade area which would be gradually upgraded over a ten-year period to a common market until the community had been established.. Regional integration arrangements in Africa have a long history, dating back to the establishment of the South African Customs Union (SACU) in 1910 and the East African Community (EAC) in 1919.1 The arrangements became fashionable and high on the agenda of Africa's policy makers since independence in the 1950s.2. In 1965, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa convened a ministerial meeting of the newly independent states of Eastern and Southern Africa has considered the proposal for the establishment of a mechanism to the promote sub-regional economic integration.. In 1978, at a meeting of Ministers of Trade, Finance and Planning in Lusaka, the creation of a sub-regional economic community was recommended, beginning with a sub-regional preferential trade area which would be gradually upgraded over a ten-year period to a common market until the community had been established.
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