M. Deme, THE IMPACT OF ECOWAS ON INTRAREGIONAL TRADE-FLOWS - AN EMPIRICAL-INVESTIGATION, The Review of Black political economy, 23(3), 1995, pp. 113-129
There is a scarcity of published statistical analysis that examines th
e impact of economic integration schemes in Africa. This study fills t
he gap in the literature. The impact of Economic Community of West Afr
ican States (ECOWAS) on trade flows of its member countries is examine
d applying an econometric analysis. The parameters of a multivariate t
rade-flows model are estimated using a panel data of the 1975 to 1991
period. The results suggest that the regional integration scheme has s
ucceeded in increasing trade flows between member countries. The gener
al view in the literature is that African integration schemes have fai
led to increase trade flows.