Publication

This paper examines the drivers of regional integration in Africa and uses the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as a case study. The paper demonstrates that, besides the multiple membership problems, many other factors explain the low level of the DRC’s regional integration, namely poor diversification of its industrial sector, political instability and the lack of a clear and well defined strategy for a regional integration process. Most importantly, the paper points out the fact that regionalization of the country has been driven more by political interests and opportunistic behavior than a well-defined economic policy.