CEMAC Integration: Harmonisation of Legal Instruments In View

A two-day workshop on its future ended in Yaounde Friday with varied recommendations.

Experts in regional integration from within and without Africa who met in Yaounde on February 27-28 to discuss the future of the Central African sub-region in a competitive global world have urged member countries to work towards harmonising their legal instruments and improving on infrastructure if they actually want to integrate and benefit from what the union offers.

The Yaounde come together, placed on the theme, “Reinforcing regional integration to accelerate growth: What priority for CEMAC?” was to share results of a study carried out by the Foundation for Research and Studies on International Development (FERDI).

Various speakers during the closing ceremony last Friday February 28 said cognizant of the fact that little or no political will to make what has been decided effective and the problem of finances to put in place infrastructure for the movement of goods and people have held down veritable integration, there was need to seek better ways of harmonizing existing legal instruments and rendering them workable.

According to the Commissioner for Political, Economic, Monetary and Financial Policy at the CEMAC Commission, Paul Tasong, putting in place the legislation is good but effectively implementing them is better for the sub-region that needs real integration to stand the test of time.

“As we rise from the conference, there is no doubt that our key partners, particularly the representatives of the member States who have the responsibility to not only put in place community legislation, but also to implement them have been adequately sensitised on the importance and the need to move in the same direction so as to improve and enhance the course of integration in central Africa,” he said.

He noted that the CEMAC Commission is looking forward for a softer ground in terms of pursuing the possibility of harmonising community legislation which is the bedrock of the sub-regional organisation.

Other recommendations included the improvement of the business climate, reinforcement of monetary and financial cooperation, accelerating the interconnection of customs administration, strengthening agriculture and infrastructure as well as reinforcing cooperation with other economic blocs.