THE IMPACT OF ECOWAS ON INTRAREGIONAL TRADE-FLOWS - AN EMPIRICAL-INVESTIGATION

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.