On Tuesday, December 16, the African Development Bank launches the 2014 edition of its flagship publication the African Development Report on the theme "Regional Integration for Inclusive Growth".

Africa's regional integration has been a key economic and political aspiration since the independence decade of the 1960s. It is also an important pillar for the work of the African Development Bank, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary as Africa's premier development finance institution in 2014.

It is thus opportune for the African Development Report 2014 to once again reexamine the imperative of regional integration for Africa's development: looking at what has changed in terms of argument and facts on the ground in the past half century, and to what extent the pursuit of closer economic and political integration is still relevant for the continent.

This year's ADR recognizes that regional integration is a tool for enhancing economic growth and fostering inclusion. The report undertakes a careful examination of the opportunities available to countries and Regional Economic Communities in bringing about sustained growth and shared prosperity. It includes discussions on the development of regional supply networks and trade within Africa's regional and global value chains. It also looks at the institutional issues, as well as the hard and 'soft' infrastructure required to connect markets, enhance competitiveness, strengthen and deepen financial systems, and position Africa as a home for global business.

The report will be formally launched on Tuesday, December 16 at the African Development Bank headquarters in Abidjan.

The full report will be available at the launch or online as of 12 p.m. GMT, Tuesday, December 16, 2014.