Overview of findings of the fourth mid-year coordination meeting between the AU and RECs

A recent article published on the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) website gives an overview of the findings of the fourth mid-year coordination meeting between the AU, Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and regional mechanisms (RMs) for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution held on 17 July in Lusaka, Zambia. Such meetings were established by the Heads of State and Governments Assembly Decision AU/Dec.635(XXVIII) adopted at the 28th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of 30 - 31 January 2017. Art. 5/c/iii of the Decision establishes that in place of the June/July Summit, the Bureau of the African Union Assembly “shall hold a coordination meeting with the Regional Economic Communities, with the participation of the Chairpersons of the Regional Economic Communities, the AU Commission and Regional Mechanisms”. The first coordination meeting was held on 8 July 2019 in Niamey, Niger.

The ISS article addresses the problem of the membership of African countries to multiple RECs, a situation often referred to as “spaghetti bowl”. After recognizing the East African Community (EAC) as the continent’s most integrated region, followed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the article questions the existence of some RECs, namely the Community of Sahel-Saharan States (CEN-SAD) and the Maghreb Arab Union (UMA), as they achieved very little in terms of economic integration between their members so far, pointing out the weak political will to keep these RECs effectively operational. The article also notes that participation in multiple RECs is expensive, because States need to contribute to the operational costs of all of them (AU included), a goal that is not easy, due to their overstretched budgets.

A message that comes to the fourth mid-year coordination meeting is that initiatives of inter-REC cooperation must be encouraged. An example is the Tripartite Free Trade Agreement between the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the EAC and SADC, a case of successful economic cooperation involving various RECs that aims to integrate into an enlarged Free Trade Area   three of the major RECs in Africa, by gradually reducing to zero percent both the tariffs for all goods traded in the bloc, as well as obstacles to trade between members countries. However, the Tripartite Free Trade Area Agreement (TFTA) since its launch (2015) has been ratified so far only by 10 member states, while the minimum threshold required for the Agreement to legally enter into force is 14 ratifications.
The article notes that overlapping and divergence of programs and priorities is a phenomenon that not only affects relations between RECs, but also relationships between RECs and the AU, despite the several attempts to achieve a strict division of labour. Although their actions should complementary with each other, this is not what happens in practice.

Relations between RECs and the AU are mainly regulated by the Abuja Treaty, which calls for the strengthening of existing Regional Economic Communities and the establishment of other communities where they do not exist, as well as the Protocol on Relations between the RECs and the AU (2008). A Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in the Area of Peace and Security between the AU, RECs and the coordinating mechanisms of the regional standby brigades of Eastern Africa and Norther Africa deals with coordination between the AU and RECs actions in matters relating to the promotion and maintenance of peace, security and stability in Africa.