Misplaced Pages

#379620

19-467: Currently there are multiple regional blocs in Africa, also known as Regional Economic Communities (RECs) , many of which have overlapping memberships. The RECs consist primarily of trade blocs and, in some cases, some political and military cooperation. Most of these RECs form the "pillars" of AEC, many of which also have an overlap in some of their member states. Due to this high proportion of overlap it

38-556: A common market. As with the economic and monetary union established among the 27 member states of the European Union (EU), an EMU may affect different parts of its jurisdiction in different ways. Some areas are subject to separate customs regulations from other areas subject to the EMU. These various arrangements may be established in a formal agreement, or they may exist on a de facto basis. For example, not all EU member states use

57-624: Is envisioned to be created in six stages: as of September 2007 Members not yet participating: DR Congo (in talks to join), Eritrea , Ethiopia , Seychelles (in talks to join), Swaziland (on derogation until SACU gives permission for Swaziland to join the FTA), Uganda (to join very soon) [1] Members not yet participating: Angola , DR Congo , Seychelles [2] not all members participating yet telecommunications , transport and energy - proposed sensitive goods to be covered from 2012 The African Free Trade Zone (AFTZ)

76-575: Is likely that some states with several memberships will eventually drop out of one or more RECs. Several of these pillars also contain subgroups with tighter customs and/or monetary unions of their own: These pillars and their corresponding subgroups are as follows: West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) Joined later: Joined later: Joined later: Joined later: UEMOA-97: UEMOA state from 1997 WAMZ-00: WAMZ state from 2000 Joined later: Joined later: Joined later: The UMA ( Arab Maghreb Union ) does not participate in

95-587: The Euro established by its currency union , and not all EU member states are part of the Schengen Area . Some EU members participate in both unions, and some in neither. Territories of the United States , Australian External Territories and New Zealand territories each share a currency and, for the most part, the market of their respective mainland states. However, they are generally not part of

114-463: The European integration ). Additionally some non member states also participate ( ASEAN Plus Three ) Limited to "entitled persons" and duration of one year. Economic and monetary union An economic and monetary union ( EMU ) is a type of trade bloc that features a combination of a common market , customs union , and monetary union . Established via a trade pact , an EMU constitutes

133-743: The Hanseatic League , a Northern European economic alliance between the 12th and 17th centuries, and the German Customs Union , formed on the basis of the German Confederation and subsequently the German Empire from 1871. Surges of trade bloc formation occurred in the 1960s and 1970s, as well as in the 1990s after the collapse of Communism . By 1997, more than 50% of all world commerce was conducted within regional trade blocs. Economist Jeffrey J. Schott of

152-535: The Maastricht Treaty (the Treaty on European Union). The EMU involves four main activities. The first responsibility is to be in charge of implementing effective monetary policy for the euro area with price stability. There is a group of economists whose only role is studying how to improve the monetary policy while maintaining price stability. They conduct research, and their results are presented to

171-483: The Peterson Institute for International Economics notes that members of successful trade blocs usually share four common traits: similar levels of per capita GNP , geographic proximity, similar or compatible trading regimes, and political commitment to regional organization. Some advocates of global free trade are opposed to trading blocs. Trade blocs are seen by them to encourage regional free trade at

190-537: The AEC so far, because of opposition by Morocco Other African regional blocs, not participating in the AEC framework (many of them predating AEC) are: Their membership is as follows: Joined later: Joined later: Only African GAFTA members are listed. GAFTA and MRU are the only blocs not currently stalled. The AEC founded through the Abuja Treaty , signed in 1991 and entered into force in 1994

209-405: The EMU ensures that the single market runs smoothly. The member countries respect the decisions made by the EMU and ensure that their actions will be in favor of a stable market. Finally, regulations of the EMU aid in supervising and monitoring financial institutions. There is an imperative need for all members of the EMU to act in unison. Therefore, the EMU has to have institutions supervising all

SECTION 10

#1732764764380

228-419: The expense of global free trade. Those who advocate for it claim that global free trade is in the interest of every country, as it would create more opportunities to turn local resources into goods and services that are both currently in demand and will be in demand in the future by consumers. However, scholars and economists continue to debate whether regional trade blocs fragment the global economy or encourage

247-1023: The extension of the existing global multilateral trading system. A common market is seen as a stage of economic integration towards an economic union or possibly towards the goal of a unified market. A single market is a type of trade bloc in which most trade barriers have been removed (for goods ) with some common policies on product regulation, and freedom of movement of the factors of production ( capital and labour ) and of enterprise and services . not all members participating involving goods , services , telecommunications , transport (full liberalisation of railways from 2012), energy (full liberalisation from 2007) telecommunications , transport and energy - proposed sensitive goods to be covered from 2019 least developed members to join from 2012 least developed members to join from 2017 Additionally some non member states also participate (the European Union , EFTA have overlapping membership and various common initiatives regarding

266-425: The implementation of monetary and fiscal policies. They will advise countries to have greater coordination, even if that means having countries tightly coupled with looser monetary and tighter fiscal policy. Not coordinating the monetary market could result in risking an unpredictable situation. The EMU also deliberates on a mixed policy option, which has been shown to be beneficial in some empirical studies. Thirdly,

285-503: The leaders of the EMU. Thereafter, the role of the leaders is to find a suitable way to implement the economists' work into their country's policies. Maintaining price stability is a long-term goal for all states in the EU, due to the effects it might have on the Euro as a currency. Secondly, the EMU must coordinate economic and fiscal policies in EU countries. They must find an equilibrium between

304-472: The participating states. Trade blocs can be stand-alone agreements between several states (such as the USMCA ) or part of a regional organization (such as the European Union ). Depending on the level of economic integration , trade blocs can be classified as preferential trading areas , free-trade areas , customs unions , common markets , or economic and monetary unions . Historic trading blocs include

323-651: The same customs territories . Several countries initially attempted to form an EMU at the Hague Summit in 1969. Afterward, a "draft plan" was announced. During this time, the main member presiding over this decision was Pierre Werner , Prime Minister of Luxembourg . The decision to form the Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union (EMU) was accepted in December 1991, which later became part of

342-514: The sixth of seven stages in the process of economic integration . An EMU agreement usually combines a customs union with a common market. A typical EMU establishes free trade and a common external tariff throughout its jurisdiction. It is also designed to protect freedom in the movement of goods, services, and people. This arrangement is distinct from a monetary union (e.g., the Latin Monetary Union ), which does not usually involve

361-648: Was announced on Wednesday October 22, 2008 by the heads of Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the East African Community (EAC). In May 2012 the idea was extended to also include ECOWAS, ECCAS and AMU. Regional bloc A trade bloc is a type of intergovernmental agreement , often part of a regional intergovernmental organization , where barriers to trade ( tariffs and others ) are reduced or eliminated among

#379620