Only a more united Africa can avoid “diversified dependency,” whereby primary commodities still dominate exports even as trade shifts eastward toward China and India. Heads of state and government convening in Addis Ababa for an African Union summit on February 14-15 must address the continent’s legacy of fragmentation in a new way.
ADDIS ABABA – It is almost impossible to imagine European Union officials receiving their salaries in a currency other than the euro, which has become an emblem of European identity and unity. But African Union employees, especially those in professional and senior positions, are predominantly paid in dollars. That is because the AU, burdened by the legacy of institutional, political, and economic fragmentation, has yet to leverage fully the catalytic potential of monetary integration and all the benefits that come with it, from lower transaction costs and exchange-rate risk to higher cross-border trade and investment.
