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Join on Telegram During the meeting of the AU Executive Council held in Nairobi in July 2023, the Kingdom of Morocco emphasized “the centrality of regional integration as a prerequisite for the success of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).” This statement reflects a strategic vision of African integration that takes into account similar experiences in other parts of the world that have faced inherent challenges in any continental integration process.
While the African Continental Free Trade Area is undoubtedly beneficial, it cannot overlook regional and sub-regional processes in Africa. Indeed, African continental integration is a long-term project, a strategic endeavor with significant political implications that embody the ideals of African unity envisioned by the founders of the OAU. While I support this argument, I advocate for a pragmatic approach to African unity based on practical grounds, particularly by addressing crucial issues. Without addressing these, no integration process could achieve its goals. These issues include inter-African peace, disarmament, the completion of African independence, and the breaking of umbilical ties, both with former colonial powers and with new attempts at African subjugation using novel methods.
Other technical concerns should be revisited in light of experiences from other world regions, such as the Arab Free Trade Area, the Preferential Trade Area of the OIC countries, or the Free Trade Area of the Americas. Since Africa’s chosen approach is similar, it’s highly likely that similar problems may arise if technical issues at the sub-regional or regional level are not resolved. These issues include challenges like a narrowly diversified production base, lack of complementarity among African nations, barriers to the free movement of goods and services such as various non-tariff obstacles, transportation and logistics bottlenecks such as lack of direct maritime and air connections between capitals, and restrictions on mobility factors such as labor and capital.
Without an ambitious trade facilitation program and the dismantling of tariffs and non-tariff measures as outlined in the AfCFTA, the low level of intra-African trade integration won’t improve. According to the latest report on African integration published by the African Development Bank (BAD), intra-African trade accounts for only 14.4% of total African exports. UNCTAD forecasts show that the AfCFTA could boost intra-African trade by about 33% and reduce the continent’s trade deficit by 51%.
Locked within the confines of narrow socio-economic spaces, African countries must broaden their horizons in their pursuit of development. They require substantial strides capable of meeting the challenges of rapid global change, as well as new avenues for growth and prosperity. In this context, and due to the significance of regional and sub-regional levels, the Kingdom of Morocco initiated the Atlantic African States Process (AASP). Three ministerial meetings were held in Rabat in June 2022, New York in September 2022, and Rabat in July 2023.
The AASP discussions led to two Rabat Declarations I and II, announcing the intentions of the evolving group’s members. The Moroccan approach seems inspired by new-generation of regional processes like APEC or the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). These initiatives share a pragmatic and gradual partnership focusing on areas of functional cooperation with immediate concrete gains; keeping in mind that any integration or cooperation processes are not in political and security vacuum. It was proved by many scholars that integration is not a technical issue but a high politics issue area; the role of ECOWAS in peace keeping and security as a whole is a good example in this vain.
Indeed, the AASP identified areas with tangible outcomes for all (first harvest). According to Rabat Declaration II, the 21 participating countries adopted an Action Plan focusing on three strategic priorities: political and security dialogue concerning counter-terrorism, transnational organized crime, maritime piracy, and illegal migration; blue economy, maritime connectivity, and energy; and sustainable development, marine environment protection, and conservation.
The emerging group could contribute to African integration in several ways:
Firstly, the selected approach doesn’t postpone the long-awaited tangible results. The carefully chosen domains could yield immediate outcomes, especially in the crucial area of security cooperation on cross-cutting issues such as illegal migration, maritime piracy, and transnational crime.
Secondly, addressing the blue economy and marine environmental protection is timely due to dwindling fishery resources caused by overexploitation and open-door policies to foreign fleets by multiple countries. The blue economy goes beyond fisheries, as the continental shelves of AASP members abound with mineral resources. Thus, AASP could lead to coordinating blue policies and even a common sectoral blue policy in the medium term.
Thirdly, maritime connectivity remains a weak point in African integration. About 90% of goods transportation is maritime, making coordination essential. Moroccan ports and logistics experience could be shared with other AASP members. Ports like Tanger Med, Casablanca, and those under construction or planned, such as Dakhla or Nador, could serve as models.
Fourthly, this process adopts an approach of “inclusive regionalism,” wherein participants emphasize the significance of fostering synergies and forming partnership connections with other initiatives and collaborative endeavors involving countries from both the Atlantic South and North regions. This all-encompassing strategy has the potential to pave the way for collaboration with additional Atlantic North nations in a subsequent phase, thereby alleviating potential apprehensions.
Lastly, the light institutional structure of AASP, with only a permanent secretariat and focal points, minimizes financial burdens on states and avoids disputes over institutional structures.
The success of the action plan launched in Rabat is crucial, as African countries need tangible results and new avenues for growth and prosperity. However, history teaches us that in any cooperation/integration process, there are catalyst actors (core areas) that drive progress, like the Kingdom of Morocco, and almost always counter-core actors attempting to slow the process out of fear for jeopardizing acquired interests or future expansion projects. This includes former colonial powers in the Atlantic.
External actors not part of the process might view AASP sceptically, nevertheless its inclusive nature could address the apprehensions of sceptical countries, since the process is open to the membership of all Atlantic countries.
