Pathways to African Unification: The Four Riders of the Storm

Research on African unification has not yet explained the reason for the belief in the possibility of post-colonial African states swiftly unifying as a federal or strong, functioning, supranational entity. This contribution attempts to fill this gap in the literature by exploring the various paths towards African unification. Some states pressing for unification misconstrued the history of the successful models that they insisted Africa could follow. This led to the assumption that a near frictionless and workable legal edifice for African unification could be easily created. This contribution has a twofold purpose: First, it draws attention to the importance of the intersection between history and law in construing and explaining the law as it relates to African unification. This is an intersection that has largely been ignored by scholars. Secondly, this contribution adds to the literature that asserts that African unification enthusiasts should reconsider mimicking other models in the expectation that this will help propel their goal of a united Africa. This study examines the routes to African unification, namely the role of socio-cultural interactions of Africans as propounded by Edward Blyden; the romantic speedy path as espoused by more radical forces by which the elite should muster the political will to bring a united Africa into existence; the role of force in creating a supranational Africa out of its independent states; and the role of market integration as an essential ingredient for any deeper and stronger relations among African states.