Niamey — In the framework of its partnership with Senghor University, the Sub-Regional Office for West Africa (SRO-WA) of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) provides support for the guidance of students in order to enable them to complete often theoretical teaching with practical learning in the field.
This support, which fits in perfectly with the mission of encouraging regional integration and promoting international cooperation for the development of Africa, aims at strengthening their knowledge base, developing their know-how and skills and preparing students for professional responsibilities.
During 2016, this initiative made it possible to highlight the contribution of the ECA SRO-WA to the regional integration process for the Members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) through a student's final dissertation to qualify for a Master's Degree in Development from Senghor University in the Department of Administration, specifically in the specialisation of Governance and Public Sector Management.
In this dissertation, directed by Dr. Dimitri Sanga, the Director of ECA SRO-WA, and accepted by the jury with an "Excellent" grade, the visiting student, Coulibaly Soro, conducted an analysis of the contribution of the organisations of the United Nations System, and particularly ECA, to the regional integration process in West Africa.
He not only analysed the components of the ECA programme in the field of regional integration and drew up an assessment of progress as well as the challenges, he also charted the extent of the interventions of ECA SRO-WA. The author of the study also presented a critical review of its actions and made recommendations.
According to the dissertation, much progress has been made in the march towards integration in West Africa and the ECA occupies an important place among the many partners. Nevertheless, the study underlines, considerable efforts remain to be made before reaching a simple, coherent architecture for regional integration that minimises its costs and maximises its positive effects in the creation of trade and economic growth. It noted that the process of integration is far from being complete in Africa, but at the same time it is important to launch the debate on the legal form of the future continental Union as "currently all the discussion on regional integration in Africa is about the substance and content rather than the form". The visiting student noted that the experience of the European Union is a good illustration of the observation that the form of the integration process is just as important as the substance.
In addition, the study concludes with the capacity of Africans, notably the leaders, to demonstrate innovation and creativity and to invent their own models for development institutions which take into account the contingencies of the African environment. "If the ECA manages to bring the African Union around to this point of view and to create the framework for discussion on the form of the future Union, it will have contributed much more significantly to improving the integration process," states the author in his dissertation.
Regarding the important place granted to the ECA in this process, the study puts forward three main reasons for this. First, the ECA is an organisation belonging to the United Nations System, the mandate of which is clearly to promote regional integration. Second, the mandate of the ECA is both regional (Africa) and sub-regional. Moreover, it is the least politically oriented organisation compared with other regional organisations (the AUC and the AfDB) and sub-regional organisations (ECOWAS and WAEMU) of integration. Lastly, the ECA, in addition to its high-level human and technical skills, is equipped with proven expertise for the production of knowledge.
