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Title Multi-membership and the effectiveness of regional trade agreements in Western and Southern Africa. A comparative study of ECOWAS and SADC
Full text http://hdl.handle.net/1765/22781
Date 2011
Author(s) Afesorgbor, S.K.; Bergeijk, P.A.G. van
Abstract Using a gravity model for 35 countries and the years 1995-2006 we estimate the impact of regional trade agreements in Africa (in particular ECOWAS and SADC) and compare this to the a benchmark of North South trade integration (Europe's preferential trade agreement). We find that • ECOWAS and SADC membership significantly increases bilateral trade flows (and by more than for example preferential trade agreements with the EU do), • SADC membership has a stronger impact compared to ECOWAS and • that the impact of multi-membership critically depends on the characteristics of the overlapping RTA. We find a positive impact if an additional membership complements the integration process of the original RTA: overlapping memberships had a significant positive effect on bilateral trade within the ECOWAS bloc but it is insignificant for SADC.
Subject(s) Sub Sahara Africa; regional economic integration; South-South trade; North-South trade; intra-regional trade; gravity model; international trade; multi-membership
Language en
Publisher ISS - International Institute of Social Studies, The Hague
Type of publication Research paper
Source Working Paper, No. 520
Identifier RePEc:dgr:euriss:520; 0921-0210
Repository Rotterdam - Erasmus University
Added to C-A: 2012-02-14;12:35:30