Abstract:
In light of recent developments such as the African Continental African Free
Trade Area agreement (AfCFTA), incrementalist approaches to regional inte
gration that focus on sub-regions seems to have been pushed to the backburner
as more focus puts the entire African continent at the centre of integration
processes. With all its potential, gradual macro-economic convergence has
accordingly been neglected. Discussions on macro-economic convergence have
on the other hand been cast over the broader sub-region such as the Southern
African Development Community (SADC) where a number of indicators and
targets have been identified and pursued closely. Whilst looking at Botswana as a
point of departure, this paper argues that incremental macro-economic
convergence is pivotal to broader regional integration and the Southern African
Customs Union (SACU) provides an ideal stepping-stone. An incrementalist
approach to macro-economic convergence as well as broader regional integration
should begin with identifying key formal institutions that serve as custodians of
macro-economic policy such as the central banks and departments of finance or
treasuries. Using secondary data sources, with Botswana as a case study, this paper
foregrounds macro-economic convergence, macro-economic policy making
institutions, and SACU as critical building blocks for broader regional integration.
