Book Description

In the early and mid-1960s, the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) championed regional integration in Africa, calling for division of the vast continent into regional economic blocs. Almost immediately, African countries responded by grouping based on their geographic proximity and the congruence of their individual interests. The call would bear more fruits when, in April 1980, the defunct Organization of African Unity (OAU), the predecessor to the African Union (AU), launched the Lagos Plan of Action. The Plan, reaffirmed in the 1991 Abuja Treaty, established three regional arrangements: separate but convergent integration arrangements for West Africa, Central Africa, and East and Southern Africa. Over the years, various initiatives have seen the light of day, as part of African governments' efforts to implement The Plan. One such initiative is the re-establishment, in November 1999, of the East African Community (EAC). The EAC's constitutive treaty tasks the EAC to ensure, inter alia, the attainment of sustainable growth and development, the promotion of sustainable utilization of natural resources, and effective protection of the natural environment, in the Partner States. Similar provisions are found in the EAC's yet-to-be-operationalized Protocol on Environment and Natural Resource Management,10 as well as the EAC's Fourth Development Strategy. So far, the EAC has made remarkable strides in steering the sub-region towards sustainable growth and development. Be that as it may, like many other sub-regional entities, the EAC faces numerous challenges. Primary among these is climate change, which poses one of the biggest impediments to the region's sustainable growth and development. This article details efforts to combat climate change within the framework of the nascent EAC. The discourse begins by providing a clear picture of the EAC's establishment, membership, purpose, and mandate, and the relevance of the latter two to EAC's climate change agenda. This is followed by a general overview of the evidence and impacts of climate change in the sub-region. In the substantive sections, the article takes stock of the achievements registered by the EAC in its efforts to address climate change in the sub-region, as well as the challenges impeding these efforts. Weighing these achievements and challenges, it then attempts to paint the picture of the prospects for addressing climate change issues in the sub-region within the EAC's prevailing framework. Finally, the author submits recommendations for addressing climate change issues in the sub-region.