The Impact of Sovereignty in the EAC Federation Process

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Abstract:

East African (EA) history now comprises, in part, of a 115-year history of formal integration, or East African Integration (EAI). EA is now seemingly poised to federate, into an East African Political Federation (EAPF). That hope is inspired by the said history. Among the concerned nations, an EAPF is a welcome prospect. It would be the culmination of a long progression, the EAI. EAI is, in sum, an implication of certain interactions among three kinds of polities, namely: colonial powers; British East African (BEA) territories; and, lastly, sovereign EA nations. But EAI is anchored in sovereignty, by way of peculiar, sovereign self-interests. The said categories of polities have been at play in EAI, given their respective peculiarities. Those peculiarities influence every polity’s interests in EAI. In the context of EAI, those peculiarities influence the interactions among the concerned polities. That way, there are certain dynamics that turn on those peculiarities. These dynamics are crucial to EAI. Sovereign self-interests are the most decisive dynamic, in the foregoing context. Those self-interests are most manifest in the competing claims to sovereignty. That way, sovereignty has profound implications for EAI. Such implications are most manifest, and are discernible, therefore, from certain three aspects of EAI, namely: course; depth; and, lastly, length or duration. Hence, sovereignty has influenced the course, depth and duration of EAI. This study is an endeavour to authenticate that claim. The findings and conclusions here affirm that claim.

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The Impact of Sovereignty in the EAC Federation Process

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