The Relevance of the European Union Integration Experience to the African Union’s Integration Process

A casual look at Europe’s and Africa’s experiences of integration suggests that they share certain similarities. They have also adopted a number of similar institutions and policy frameworks, and both regions have set for themselves the ambitious target of creating economic communities for their respective regions. They, however, have followed different historical trajectories of integration, which challenges the notion that the similarities in their adopted institutions of integration could be an attempt by the African Union (AU) to mimic the European Union (EU) integration experience.