The Evolution of Pan-Africanism

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"All of us may not live to see the higher accomplishment of an African Empire-so strong and powerful, as to compel the respect of mankind, but we in our life-time can so work and act as to make the dream a possibility within another generation."

Marcus Mosiah Garvey

"I strongly believe that Pan-Africanism is even more relevant today than it was in the 1960s. Then it was necessarily visionary but it was this very idealism that served to limit Pan-Africanism to a dream, limiting its scope and to a large extent derailing it. When the hard reality of development set in, the ideals of Pan-Africanism were quietly forgotten and were put on the shelf to gather dust. Yet Africa's place as an equal partner at the global table can only be assured if it thinks and acts regionally."

Lalla Ben Barka
Deputy Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA)

The Evolution of Pan-Africanism

The ultimate goal is "A United Africa". This is the final destination of the long journey but we should pause and ask several questions. The first of these is "where did the journey start?" as we can draw on lessons from the past for understanding of the issues we currently face. The second question; "where are we now?" places achievements and challenges in the movement towards unity in context, and gives us the necessary information to ask "Where do we go from here?"

Where did the journey start?

The call for a " United Africa" has been around for a long time. A look back at history is needed to understand the evolution of "Pan-Africanism" which takes its roots from the slave trade, colonialism, oppression and exploitation. Pan-Africanism represented a reaction against the oppression of the black man and the racial doctrines that marked the era of slavery.

Pan-Africanism evolved from a movement of self-assertion and resistance to enslavement in those early days, to organized forces with cultural and political claims. After the Second World War, It took on a continental dimension and came to represent the quest for continental unity.

The continued survival of this movement and its functional relevance to this day underlines the validity of the political, economic and strategic consideration behind Pan-Africanism.

Series of Pan-African Congresses

The first Pan- African conference to address the problems of African people worldwide was held in 1900, when Mr Henry Sylvester-Williams convened a conference in London. The delegates talked of creating a movement to campaign for African people's rights. It achieved the idea of oneness in experience that has reconfirmed itself again and again.

Following the procedure adopted by Henry Sylvester-Williams, in connection with the 1900 Pan-African conference, W.E.B DuBois convened and presided over a series of Pan-African congresses between 1919 and 1945 which laid the ground for later successes. The fifth in the series, held in 1945, is considered to herald the beginning of a new era where for the first time, Africans from Africa, Africans from the Caribbean and Africans from the United States came together and designed a programme for the future independence of Africa. They proclaimed all dependencies must be free from alien control, both political and economic.

The Fifth Pan-African Congress (Manchester, England 1945)

Seen in retrospect, this Congress won the reputation as pacemaker for decolonization in Africa, which demanded an end to colonial rule and an end to racial discrimination. While it carried forward hopes and visions for a United Africa, the Fifth Congress injected a note of militancy, which was taken back to Africa and enhanced the struggle for national independence.

Ninety delegates attended, with twenty-six from all over Africa. These included Peter Abrahams for the African National Congress (ANC), and a number of men who were later to become political leaders in their countries, such as Hastings Banda, Kwame Nkrumah, Obafemi Awolowo and Jomo Kenyatta.

Independence Era

With the independence of African countries, the first significant step was taken in the continent's struggle for unity as it gained a much-needed base on African soil. Pan-Africanism remained in the realm of ideas until Ghana, under Kwame Nkrumah, became a sovereign state in 1957. The emancipation of Ghana served to pave the way for closer co-operation among African people. Thus, from 1958 onwards, the notion of Pan -Africanism moved into the realm of practical policies.

The Accra Conferences 1958

The national liberation struggles made Africans realize more and more that they faced common tasks and that unity had become a necessity. In April 1958, for the first time, leaders of independent African States met to discuss common problems with a view to working out common policies covering political, economic, cultural and social matters. The meeting was held in Ghana and was attended by seven other independent states, namely; Libya, Ethiopia, Liberia, Morocco, Tunisia, Sudan and the United Republic of Egypt.

The All-African People's Conference

The broadest representation of the numerous political and public organizations in African countries was achieved through the All-African People's Conference. The first conference met at Accra, Ghana in December 1958 under a banner proclaiming "HANDS OFF AFRICA! AFRICA MUST BE FREE!"

The special Contribution of American and West Indians of African origin to the development of Pan-Africanism was noted at the First All-African People's Conference in Accra in 1958 by Dr. Nkrumah who said

".....Many of them have made no small contribution to the cause of African freedom. Names which spring immediately to mind in this connection are those of Marcus Garvey, and W.E.B. DuBois. Long before many of us were even conscious of our own degradation, these men fought for African national and racial equality.

Long may the links between Africa and the peoples of African descent continue to hold us together in fraternity. Now that we in Africa are marching towards the complete emancipation of this Continent, our independent status will help in no small measure their efforts to attain full human rights and human dignity as citizens of their country."

An address entitled " the future of Africa" by DuBois who was at that time approaching 91 years of age and unwell, was given on his behalf by his wife. Among other things he said,

"If Africa unites, it will be because each part, each nation, each tribe gives up a part of the heritage for the good of the whole. That is what union means; that is what Pan Africa-means: When the child is born into the tribe the price of his growing up is giving a part of his freedom to the tribe. This he soon learns or dies. When the tribe becomes a union of tribes, the individual tribe surrenders some part of its freedom to the paramount tribe."

The second gathering was held in Tunis, Tunisia in January 1960 and the third in Cairo, Egypt in March 1961. From conference to conference there was a great desire for unity and on May 25 1963, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 32 African Heads of states and Government came together to form the Organization of African Unity (OAU), a crucial step in the movement towards integration.

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The status of regional integration in Africa

There has been very little or no attempt to articulate and present the status of regional integration in Africa in a way that captures the essence of numerous and diverse studies, meetings, writings and declarations by a host of actors and players in the field.

The need for such analysis has stimulated ECA's initiative to conduct a regular assessment of the process through a comprehensive status report called Annual Report on Integration in Africa-ARIA. The report was conceived to provide accurate and up-to-date information, to help to streamline actions towards the achievement of the ultimate goal of African e economic and political union. Effectively knowing where we stand is a key factor affecting where we go next and where we end up.

The past two decades have witnessed a resurgence of regional economic integration groupings at a global level. The challenges of African development are compounded by the globalization and liberization of the world economy, greater economic integration of financial and money markets, and a shift towards the creation of large trading and economic blocs. These developments offer not only challenges but also timely opportunities to Africa, and there is a need to broaden the concept of regionalism and to rethink Africa's regional integration strategy.

The fundamental objectives for the formation of Africa's regional economic communities (RECs) derive from the need of the member countries in such arrangements to achieve, individually and collectively, higher levels of development that would otherwise prove elusive under the autarky approach. The Treaty establishing the AEC/AU makes it very clear that the realization of the African Union depends critically on the performance of the RECs, which are the building blocks of the continental body.

Although regional cooperation and integration has been on Africa's development agenda for quite a while, this strategy, in general, produced very limited results for the African region considering the protracted efforts of governments, institutions and other players. The African economies remain largely disconnected from one another, relatively underdeveloped and most are stagnant. The overall integration process has been fraught with a number of difficulties, not least of which are the lack of a concerted approach and direction, dispersed interventions and intentions, and sometimes confused responsibilities among the myriad of players.

It came out clearly from the first ARIA assessment that a combination of factors constituted a significant drag on advancement towards integration objectives. Major features can be summarized as follows

Inadequate ownership and follow-up of integration at national level

Inadequate interface between the objectives and instruments of regional and overall national development framework noted. Thus, measures agreed in regional forums are rarely incorporated in national policies and plans. Their implementation at country level is therefore not carried out forcefully at the level of legislation and administration.

Low impact of trade liberalization on intra-REC trade flows

It is striking to note that despite the efforts to liberalize trade which almost all of the RECs have been actively and extensively doing, the volume of intra-REC trade is very low. There is a high degree of concentration in the same commodities with very little product diversification. The trade facilitation, liberization and promotion instruments do not seem to have had a major impact in boosting intra-REC and intra-African trade. Furthermore, the investment environment has not been attractive enough to induce a significant degree of foreign investment including indigenous cross-board flows.

Inadequate infrastructure a serious bottleneck for physical integration

Limited infrastructure availability and networks, particularly in energy, transport and communications, emerges strongly as a key bottleneck contributing to the high cost of doing business. This undermines the competitiveness of African products domestically and internationally, and acts as a disincentive to foreign investment.

Macroeconomic policy convergence remains largely a mirage

The importance of macroeconomic policy convergence as a critical ingredient for deeper integration is given due cognizance in all the integration arrangements. Some RECs such as UEMOA and CEMAC are making a significant headway on this front. Many RECs have established parameters on macroeconomic convergence to help orient their member States' efforts towards reforms and stability that ensure cohesiveness and unity of purpose.

RECs have very limited resources and capacities to handle sectoral issues

RECs are involved in many sectoral areas in which they have very little capacity, resources or comparative advantage. At best, interventions are peripheral and a lot still remains to be accomplished. Furthermore, the overlap of RECs operating within the same subregional spaces in Africa continues to undermine cohesiveness and unity. This has been an issue much debated and discussed. It is perhaps something that will never go and which will not be solved without hard political decisions on merging of one REC with another or closing down one in favour of the another. These are politically sensitive options.

Global exigencies add to the formidable challenges facing RECs

With the advent of the twin phenomena of world trade liberization and globalization, it is obvious that the pursuit of African integration cannot ignore the exigencies of the multilateral trading system in the context of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Openness towards world markets and removal of barriers to international trade and investment are key characteristics of the phenomena of globalization and liberization of world trade. The majority of African RECs are still to be recognized by WTO in the context of the rules governing regional trading arrangements as stipulated under GATT Article XXIV. The interface between Africa's integration agenda and the increasingly liberalizing and globalizing world economy needs to be adequately addressed as a priority for REC activities.

Abuja Treaty framework: A loose or strictly binding blueprint for action?

Finally, congruence between REC policies and programmes and the continental integration agenda leaves much to be desired. The REC treaties appear to take precedence over the Abuja Treaty as far as policy formulation and implementation are concerned. There are no hard and fast rules binding REC integration agendas with the continental framework. All depend on best endeavour efforts with no "supra-national" oversight authority.

The above clearly shows the need for more effort and commitment to promote regional integration as it remains the key solution to overcoming economic fragmentation and promoting economic diversification. Ultimately, the African Union is a means of transforming the continent from a fragmented region of least developed and developing states into a strong and a unified federation of developed nations. The current emphasis on integration led the move to form the AU. The New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) is the major supporting international initiative.

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Perspectives on the Way Forward

While the AU and its Charter clearly offers us the best way to move towards integation and African Unity, it is still a framework that needs fleshing out. This will be an extended process over the next few years that will incorporate the voices of African leaders, ordinary citizens and committed professionals.

Here we have some proposals for ways that different sectors can be developed and utilized to best further the goals of the AU.

"So I, for one, want to see reforms. I want to see intra-African integration, not because we will garner some utopian share of world commerce, but first and formost because it will improve our lives here. It will free up the time of African businesspeople to do business here.It will lower costs. It will make the African consumer's plight so much more hopeful. We must build for ourselves. If we do that others will come."
K. Y. Amoako (taken from Accelerating the pace of Integration-Keynote address to the African Development Bank (ADB) Annual Meetings Symposium on "Regional Cooperation and Integration in Africa: Progress, Challenges and Obstacles" on 26 May 1998)

The Role of African Media

"Communication has always been the key to dissolving borders.The oral storytelling tradition was the way in which us Africans shared our news, preserved our history, ensured social cohesion and stability, and charted our future. We should see the media in Africa today as a continuation of our traditions. The African media is critical to fostering regional integration because it can enable the sharing of knowledge to people in different countries who are linked by common problems and common goals. New technologies like digital satellite radio can turn local content into regional programming. By its very nature, the Internet renders borders defunct, by providing a space for information sharing and dialogue that can unite people from different parts of the continent and the world. With advent of New Media, everyone -- from local communities to national publishers -- can share their news, views and issues with a wider audience. As the space for communication grows, so to do channels for raising awareness about the value-added of regional integration in all its forms. As more and more Africans become part of the communication loop, regional integration truly becomes a reality."

Peter da Costa
Media Specialst

Contribution of economic integration to the unification of Africa

"For about three decades following the wave of independence in the early 1960’s, Africa’s most advocated cause in continental forums has been the liberation of Africa from any form of political colonization, although development had always been on top of the agenda of the Organisation of African Unity. With the advent of an independent Namibia in 1990, no territory of Africa was any longer under external domination. Yet the unification of the continent has a long way to go. What can Africa’s economic integration contribute to this process?

As evidenced in the case of Europe, economic integration helps create a homogenous space and, to some extent, equalize living conditions. These appear to be prerequisites for a dialogue on the harmonization of political stands. Indeed, an economic space that is physically integrated; where goods and services move speedily and smoothly; where, besides, the mobility of factors (manpower, capital, energy, inputs) is not subjected to hindrances; where, finally, macroeconomic policies are harmonized, is likely to offer equal opportunities to all. Such a high degree of economic integration is not sustainable without a policy dialogue on issues that, at first, may not fall squarely under economic field; peace and security, defense, diplomacy etc.

In the case of Africa, it can be safely stated that, once the continent has achieved a significantly advanced degree of economic integration, its political unification will be greatly facilitated. It appears difficult to conceive a united Africa without strong economic links among countries of the continent."

Ngartando Blayo
Economic Affairs Expert, ECA

The Regional Economic Communities (RECs)

"No country is immune from the effects of regionalism as it shapes world economic and political relationships and influences the development of the multilateral trading system.

What we call Regional Economic Communities (RECs) date back to the colonial era. However, most of the integration schemes were adopted after independence during the late 1960s and 1970s. Common features of these include sharing common colonial ties with a host of common institutions and common official languages. In other instances, the RECs were formed based on the geographic proximity of member States.

RECs have an important role to play as we move towards economic and political integration in Africa if and when the issues of security, bargaining power and commitment are adequately addressed.

RECs, although primarily economic in orientation, can use their membership for increasing security against non-members. They may also enhance a country's security in its relationship with other members which makes conflicts more expensive--and regular political contact can built trust and facilitate other forms of cross-border cooperation. In other words, if African countries know where and how to butter their bread, they'll realize that the formation of RECs is good politics.

The second is obviously bargaining power, the hope that from unity comes strength. As small RECs form bigger ones, they can enter negotiations more effectively than can separate countries or small RECs might be able to. Of course, this is depended on the ability to form common and effective positions. And finally, I believe RECs can provide a "commitment mechanism" for trade and other policy reform measuresto which individual countries must adhere. However, all of this depends on the interests and degree of involvement of all the members.

The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) especially through its five Subregional Development Centres (SRDCs) has a facilitative role to play. The Commission's resources can be used to provide technical support to RECs, and ECA can also be instrumental by providing forums of communication and information exchange for ensuring harmony between subregional and regional programmes and those defined by the strategic directions of the Commission. ECA also provides the technical and advisory services to member States and to RECs to facilite regional economic cooperation, integration and development. In this way the Commission can facilitate RECs to fit in the bigger picture of regional integration efforts in Africa"

Joseph N. Ngu
Economic Affairs Expert, ECA

Effective governance and regional integration.

"The effective implementation of regional integration is founded on enabling environment that promote accountability, transparency and respect for the rule of law. Also strong institutional framework at the regional and national levels is fundamental to streamline regional agreements into national policies. In addition, the establishment of an effective transnational implementation tools pride opportunities to push reforms conducive to good governance at the regional level. A clear demonstration of this can be observed in legal systems and the need for a regional framework and related judicial institutions to provide an improved regional environment for private sector development.

In the course of the last few years, the concept of good governance, and the appropriate ways and means of fostering it, have become a major object of the development discourse. Indeed, measurable progress towards improved governance, as well as acceptance of the broader principles and practices of democracy, are becoming an integral part of the development agenda in Africa. Therefore, the ECA project on assessing and monitoring governance is a timely initiative designed to address these issues.

It is increasingly emphasized that rapid and sustained development requires, other elements – such as an effective public administration, a functioning legal framework, efficient and predictable regulatory structures, and transparent systems for both financial and legal accountability."

Abdalla Hamdok
Governance Expert, ECA

Gender Equity: The Missing Link in Regional Integration

"Consensus is growing that in order to eradicate poverty and ensure sustainable development; it is critical that both men and women are empowered to contribute to trade.

Of the objectives of regional integration, the effects of trade liberalisation on different social groups including women and men are among least understood. In particular, the contribution of cross-border trade to national and regional economic development is imperfectly understood. Cross-boarder trade is an informal but economically important transaction carried out mostly by women between several African countries, and it involves the production and trading in food, textiles products and other commodities and have a potential to contribute to increased regional trade.

Recently, ECA’s African Centre for Gender and Development (ACGD) initiated work on constructing gender-aware mathematical models for policy forecasting and analysis of the effects of national planning instruments on women and macroeconomic outcomes. Modelling the effects of cross-boundary trade in particular, is expected to deepen the understanding of policy analysts regarding the contribution of this trade on women’s welfare and overall regional economic development. "

Alfred Latigo
Gender Expert, ECA

Opportunities for harnessing ICTs for regional integration

"ICTs have become essential components in the whole chain of trade promotion, facilitation and regional co-operation. Tools such as the Internet promote global markets and give voices to small and medium enterprises and farmers alike, to enable them to market and deliver goods and services irrespective of their location.

ICTs can also catalyse trans-border data flows bringing down barriers to personal communications, and removing the constraints of national boundaries, physical disabilities, distance, and time zones. Access to expanded telecommunication networks also reduces the costs of international communication among countries, and fosters cross-border information and data exchange.

Improved institutional information management, intra-institutional communication between regional co-operation institutions and their constituencies also facilitate integration. They can also play a critical role in linking national or regional organisations that work on similar objectives to consult, share information and collaborate on joint projects."

Aida Opoku-Mensah
ICT Expert, ECA

Regional cooperation and integration in the energy sector

"In the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), it is stated that energy plays a critical role in the development process; first as a domestic necessity but also as a factor of production whose cost directly affects prices of other goods and services, and the competitiveness of enterprises. But Africa’s abundant energy resources are unevenly distributed within regions and often occur at great distances from the energy demand areas. This makes subregional energy interchange an ideal opportunity to develop and use energy resources more efficiently and for the greatest benefit of all Africa’s people.

Thus, regional cooperation and integration through energy pooling and cross-border energy flows would help minimize the cost of supply arising from the economies of scale of large regional supply systems, whilst enhancing reliability, and security of supply. This has been achieved through, among others: the joint development of hydropower projects, and promoting cross-border energy trade through the interconnection of electricity grids and gas pipelines networks.

A good example of joint development of hydroelectric resources is the Manantali hydropower project of the Senegal River Basin Development Organization (OMVS) between Mali, Mauritania and Senegal in West Africa region, which started under a 15 year operations and maintenance contract awarded to the south African energy company, Eskom Enterprises.Promoting cross-border electricity trade is well-established within the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) in Southern African Development Community (SADC) region, and energy pooling through the interconnection of electricity grids is being developed within the West African Power Pool (WAPP), and an important gas pipelines network is being realised with the West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP) both in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region."

Pancrace Niyimbona
Energy Expert, ECA

Integrated efforts in the water sector in Africa

"Integration efforts in the water sector in Africa have been primarily in the domain of transboundary river/lake basin organizations (RBOs), although a number of subregional economic communities also play significant roles in promoting subregional cooperation and in implementing subregional projects in the sector.

Subregional economic communities such as SADC, ECOWAS, COMESA and others have implemented and/or have in the pipeline a number of water, environment, irrigation and fisheries-related subregional projects. SADC has the singular distinction of having successfully promoted a subregional protocol on shared water resources that has been signed by all member countries with the exception of DRC.

Various regional institutions such as ECA, ADB and OAU have been promoting subregional and regional cooperation in the water sector in Africa. ECA played a catalytic role in establishing some of the existing transboundary river/lake basin organizations in Africa. ECA also played a role in promoting establishment of similar cooperative mechanisms in the Nile, the Zambezi and the Lake Victoria basins, where formal mechanisms for cooperation presently do not exist. ECA provides technical support and backstopping services to the existing RBOs whenever it is called upon to do so.

ECA in collaboration with OAU, ADB and other relevant subregional organizations is now spearheading the water sector programme under the initiative of New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). ECA, OAU and ADB are also preparing a Strategic Action Plan for the implementation of Africa Water Vision 2025."

Azm Hoque
Water-River Basin Development Expert, ECA

Mining and regional co-operation

"Regional co-operation in the mining sector was first articulated in the early 80s following adoption of the Lagos Plan of Action. It embraced a continuum of inter-country collaboration schemes which ranges from simple forms such as information networking to more complex schemes characterized by attempts to adopt common policies, harmonise legislation, standards, procedures and practices. Co-operation in the mining sector among the member states of SADC represents the most elaborate of such schemes.

The driving forces behind regional co-operation in the mining sector in Africa are:

* To facilitate access to specialized services and products in a co-operative manner,
* To create and establish subregional centres of excellence for capacity building, research and development where economies of scale can be realized;
* To improve the competitiveness of mining in Africa by creating a modern geo-infrastructure, improving connectivity and facilitating access to data, producing regional thematic maps and other geo-information, harmonizing laws and regulations and reducing transaction costs in general; and
* T`o maximize linkages between mining and other sectors of the economy "

Antonio Pedro
Mining Expert, ECA