Regional Integration and Multilateral Agreement in Africa: A Case Study of Lake Chad Basin Commission

Article Citation: Mohammed Bala Adamu & Abdulrasheed Adamu (2023). Regional Integration and Multilateral Agreement in Africa: A Case Study of Lake Chad Basin Commission. DEGEL: The Journal of the Faculty of Arts and Islamic Studies, Vol. 20, No. 1 & 2. ISSN 0794-9316

REGIONAL INTEGRATION AND MULTILATERAL AGREEMENT IN AFRICA: A CASE STUDY OF LAKE CHAD BASIN COMMISSION

By

Mohammed Bala Adamu & Abdulrasheed Adamu

Abstract

Despite efforts of the government in ensuring governance toward Regional integration as a Sustainable development policy of lake chad basin commission, challenge of integrating is the multi-cultural and diverse nation or state lake chad basin commission has a difference traditional groups, and socio-political economic development of lake chad basin commission, the specific objectives are to consolidate Regional integration for sustainable development of lake chad basin commission, The study adopted secondary source of data. Based on the findings, the study recommended that chad, and Cameroon, Niger and Nigeria should establish a lasting solution defence for sustainable development in the Region.

Introduction

Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) was created on 22 May 1964 by the Heads of State of Chad, Cameroon, Niger, and Nigeria, making it one of the oldest Basin Commission in Africa. Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) was created to promote and maintainable management of economic in the Lake Chad and other water Resources Rivers in the area. In the last decade the region has been marked by insecurity, due to the terrorist activities of the insurgent movement in the Region, Boko Haram raising issues regarding its mandate in the empire of peace and security. The organisation was created soon after the independence of the member countries in 1960. Although postcolonial, and while the colonial powers France, UK, and Germany had used, to demarcate borders, it was set up with the technical support of France, still interested in maintaining some influence in the basin area. In the1985 summit the LCBC the mandate to enlarge the basin organisation, notably to the Central African Republic (CAR), which acceded in 1994. Libya joined the LCBC in 2008 and Sudan, Egypt, the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo have observer status, ( Ackah, and Opoku 2012).

Attune to the River Basin development model, the LCBC countries adopted a long-term vision and strategic action plan in 2008 and a Water Charter in April 2012. The Water Charter’s development and initial implementation was supported by the Fond Français pour, Environment Mondale (FFEM) with Nigeria having purportedly played a leading role in concrete way for its preparation (Lemoalle & Magrin, 2014,). The Water Charter purposes to help the LCBC achieve its Vision 2025 and Strategic Action Plan with an approach motivated by the philosophies of Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM). Joint management of water resources is a crucial point in the setting of increasing consumption of water throughout the basin, due to demographic trends and human activities.

The Lake Chad Basin is a highly variable hydrological system in a mostly arid or semi-arid ‘Sahelian zone’. A dramatic reduction in the Lake’s surface area in the past decades has made the area increasingly water-stressed. While there is still debate on the long-term trends and the challenges of climate change in the basin, the drying of Lake Chad has become a key feature of climate change discussions at a global level. The rise of Boko Haram in the 2000s has further put the Lake Chad area under stress and at the centre of global attention.

Back growing to contemporary security challenged. As a sub region, the Lake Chad Basin countries find themselves at a regional cross border in a number of ways. Historically an area of heightened cross-border mobility, the main riparian countries Chad, Niger, the Central African Republic (CAR), Nigeria, and Cameroon are split between two political and economic blocks. Nigeria and Niger are part of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), with Chad, Cameroon and the Central African Republic part of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS). LCBC was originally established in 1964 to foster the management and exploitation of Lake Chad, as well as to promote cross-border security in a context where the changing shores of the Lake led to internal and cross-border migration and banditry. In recent years, faced with increasing and new forms of insecurity and the absence of a dedicated regional bloc, the LCBC’s mandate for regional security cooperation has gained prominence with a formal mandate to provide the civilian leadership to the Multinational Joint Task Force, an AU sanctioned cross-border military operation in the Lake Chad area.

The Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) was created to promote the common management of water and environmental resources including economic and Agricultural product in the area of the basin. However water is clearly the entry point, at the same time the institution agreement can be read as requiring to promote a space of peaceful coexistence in the region. Awareness that water can be a potential driver of conflict among countries and communities, this potentially implies a wider LCBC mandate to cover areas such as security, Economic, politics and human development which is particularly relevant today.

Military cooperation in the Lake Chad Basin, Multinational Joint Security Force predates the rise of Boko Haram. The instability of the basin countries security systems and porous borders allowed for armed groups and common banditry to embellishment. In 1994 at the 8th summit of the LCBC, due to smuggling and criminal activities taking place in the area, the member states decided to establish a joint security force based in Gomburun Ngala, Baga- Kukawa and Banki - Bama in Nigeria, however only Nigeria committed troops at that stage (Musa, 2013). In 1998, the security force was expanded to include other member states of the LCBC by establishing the Multinational Joint Security Force (MNJSF). This formation had the initial mandate to conduct military operations in the Lake Chad Region, squared crime activities and to facilitate free movement of member states’ troops across their common border.” (Musa, 2013). While the LCBC acted as a political forum, its direct involvement in these early experiences was restricted.

The outcome of the 2009 “Boko Haram Disturbance, which left more than 30,000 dead in Northern Nigeria, motivated the reorganisation of the MNJSF. In 2019, in response to the increasingly cross-border nature of the insurgency against Nigeria and its neighbors, the MNJSF was re-launched as the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF). This reorganisation led to an increase in the operational capacity of the MNJTF to an estimated 15,000 troops initially driven by Nigeria (Zamfir 2017). The MNJTF was based in Baga, Banki - Bama and Gamboru Ngala, Nigeria until the base was overrun by Boko Haram in January 2015. Military headquarters were subsequently moved to N’Djamena, and the MNJTF was brought under the political lead of the African Union and its African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA).

The multinational joint task force (MNJTF) is by no means an exclusive framework for cooperation, and national and bilateral deployments take place regularly. In June 2016, for example, Chad deployed 2,000 troops to Niger after Boko Haram took the town of Bosso, causing 50,000 people to flee. The MNJTF is in the first place a framework for coordinating different national military actions (Zamfir, 2017). Under the MNJTF troops are deployed within the countries’ own national boundaries, and operate within those as a matter of priority (Assanvos et al., 2016). They may however under specific circumstances operate within a limited perimeter on the territory of neighboring states.

Thus, the nexus between multilateralism and regional integration are inextricably interwoven. Many Scholars (Sapir, 1992; Vamvakidis, 1998; Schiff and Winters 2003) have discussed regional integration and multilateralism in their works but the focus of their researches was not to connect regional integration with multilateralism. Thus, the current research agenda is extending the boundary of knowledge by establishing relationship that exists between multilateralism and regional there are several studies conducted on Multilateral Agreement of Lake Chad basin commission on Socio- Economy Development of Chad Cameroon Niger and Nigeria. Nwokoye (2018) focused on economic structure of West Africa. Alli (2019) Nigeria in regional security policy, Omo-ogbebor (2017) studied on Asymmetry of ECOWAS integration process: contribution of regional hegemon and small country and Sahel, (2006). Studied on the socio-economic and regional context of West African migrations.

Lake Chad Basin Commission Border is demarcated without any clear-cut policy to back it up and the security personnel safeguarding the area are not adequate. The security personnel Customs, Immigration, Army forces, Navy etc. are been designated to the various outpost on both sides of the borders but their activities need to be questioned. Furthermore, the challenges of cross-border crime on the security of Chad Cameroon Niger and Nigeria are not adequately researched especially with the current trend in the international community of terrorism. Every country is prone to terrorist attack, Chad Cameroon Niger and Nigeria has been affected highly by the Boko Haram sect. The porosity of the borders around Chad Cameroon Niger and Nigeria gave way for the influx of external migrants to perpetrate attacks on foreign lands, security challenges is affecting the economics of multilateral Agreement of Lake Chad basin commission on Socio- Economy Development of the Lake Chad basin region.

Literature Gap

From the Available literature at the time of this research, there are no relevant literature on Regional integration and Multilateral Agreement in Africa: A case study of Lake Chad Basin Commission.

Objectives of the Study

The main objective of the study is to assess the Regional integration and Multilateral Agreement in Africa: A case study of Lake Chad Basin Commission, the specific objectives are to assess the Socio- Economy Development of Lake Chad basin commission.

  i.   To examine Regional Integration of Socio- economy development

  ii.   To assess the Economic interdependence of Lake Chad basin .

 iii.   To examine Political Integration of Lake Chad basin

Literature Review

This section discourses relevant literatures in relation to the current research. It attempts to review research works that are relevant to the study. In this way, literatures on regionalism, regional integration and multilateralism are considered in this segment.

Regional Integration of Socio- economy development

Regional Integration represents all interactions that involve three or more transnational actors within the international system. Concepts like institution, order, regime and organization have been frequently employed to explain multilateralism. It needs to be stated here that not all of these concepts are necessarily multilateral in nature unless they incorporate elements that are inherent in the multilateral arrangement (Hasenclever et al, 1997). Multilateralism is therefore an act of organizing policies collectively among three or more states with a view to achieving specific aims and objectives based on certain values, norms and principles (Ruggie, 1993). Multilateralism according to Ruggie (1993) is based on three principles. These principles are exchange, indivisibility, and nondiscrimination.

The implication is that Nigeria is not safe due to cross-border population and its attendant economic activities, cross-border crossing and immigration, ineffective border control and the porosity of Nigerian borders which is a challenge to Nigeria national security and boundary questions. In the north-east, the borders Nigeria shares with Chad Cameroun, Niger and Nigeria stretch over 1,690, 1,497 and 87 kilometers respectively. The porosity of the Nigerian borders is the main factor encouraging the proliferation of illegal arms and insurgencies in the country (Ering, 2011). It is against this background that the study intends to assess multilateral Agreement of Lake Chad basin commission on Socio- Economy Development of Chad Cameroon Niger and Nigeria.

Economic interdependence of Lake Chad Basin

Economic interdependence of Lake Chad basin and regional integration is economic interdependence. Political economists (Wallenstein, 1983; Shaw, 1989; Nester, 2001) assert that an economy's welfare can be maximized, other than in very exceptional circumstances, if governments lower trade barriers on a nondiscriminatory basis (either through unilateral action or through negotiations at the global level that adhere to the WTO's principle of non-discrimination). Regional trade agreements, on the other hand, can reduce global welfare by distorting the allocation of resources, and may even lead to welfare losses for their members.

Moreover, from the political scientist's perspective, it is usually more efficient to negotiate a single agreement with a large number of states than to undertake a series of negotiations with individual states or with small groupings (because it both economizes on the resources needed for negotiations and increase for trade-offs in reaching a package deal). Why, then, has regionalism not only been attractive to governments throughout the post-war period but has apparently become increasingly so since the 1980s? Governments usually have multiple motives when entering an arrangement as complex as a regional partnership: it would be naïve to expect to find a single factor that explains governments' actions across all regional agreements. Moreover, governments often enter regional economic agreements primarily for political rather than economic reasons. The scholars of international economic relations (Tomas &Vera, 2010; Ogunsanwo, 2005; Wallenstein, 1983; Spero & Hart, 2009) have conducted various researches to see whether increased trade relations among nations can bring about peaceful coexistence or conflict situation. The question of the impact of trade on interstate relations is not only theoretically interesting, but has important policy implications. Centuries nations have cling to the hope that trade and interstate ties will cement the bounds of friendship that make the resort to arms unthinkable. It must be said that most the integration policies in Europe in the 19 and 20 centuries were premised on the assumption of increased trade relations among European partners.

This is an excellent example to this proposition. Thus, in the light of recent trends towards regional integration, and increasing efforts to expand trade linkages among previously hostile nations, it is important to consider the potential impact of such relations. The grand theory that gives better explanation to the above exposition is the functional theory. It argues that the expansion of interstate linkages in one area stimulates further cooperation in other areas. Interstate linkages, therefore, are thought to improve communication, reduce misunderstanding, and foster cultural and institutional mechanism capable of mediating conflicts of interest that do arise. Definitely then, the recognition of mutual benefits through cooperation serves to foster peace, as national interest converge. The prime example is the workings of EAC.

The EAC member states seek to improve their economic base by pooling together scarce resources and increasing trade in the sub-region to provide goods and services to their citizens. The thinking is that a combined resource base would enable the East African states to utilise their meagre resources in a better and more appropriate way. The East African Community Treaty states that: “the partner states undertake to establish among themselves and in accordance with the provisions of the treaty, a customs union, a common market, subsequently a monetary union and a political federation” (East African Community Treaty, 2002). Thus, if member states of the EAC share similar rights, the socio-economic and political destiny that they desire will thrive.

It is the assumption of the functional theory that economic interdependence will ultimately lead to political integration. This should not surprise us. The testing ground for this theoretical base is European political climate which many researchers have been used as typical model of functional theory. By definition therefore, economic integration is a process by which the countries in a specific multilateral organization pool together their political sovereignty to achieve their common goals and objectives. The definition may sound complex but this basis upon which the political Integration works. Most regional integration assumes to achieve this by making common stance towards achieving their common interests in the global politics. As mentioned above, only European Union has been able to achieve this milestone while other regional organizations are still battling with the issue of non-interference in the internal affairs of their various states. The functional theory postulates that common political integration policy promotes avenue for community of states to achieve more than the ordinary. It is on this premise

That EAC was formed possibly to ease regional tension. It should be stated that of all the continents of the world, Africa is the worst hit by colonialism. From the 1960s and 1970s it became fashionable on the part of African leaders to come up with political integration policy that will ease regional tension caused by the colonial masters. Unfortunately, after decades of gaining independence it became increasingly difficult for Africa-west, east, south and north- to come forge a meaningful political integration in their respective region. It is assumed that if regional political integration is formed, it may possibly wipe away mutual suspicion and provide Africa continent with political leverage of speaking with a voice in global politics.

From the above, therefore, it is clear that EAC is moving gradually to overcome all obstacles that may serve as impediment to political integration of the east African region. Doing this will provide small and warring countries like Burundi and Rwanda to socialise with big brothers in the region.

It is believed that the problem discussed is half-solved. It is also the policy focus of the community to ensure free movement of the people of East African states in the sub-region and establish common political institutions to promote political stability among the partner states of the EAC. It also aims to establish common identity through the use of a common language to realise its target of political federation. Article 5 (1) states that the “objectives of the community shall be to develop policies and programmes aimed at widening and deepening cooperation among the partner states in political, economic, social and cultural fields, research and methodology, defence, security and Legal and judicial affairs for mutual benefits” (Ada, 2005:32). Therefore, policies and practices achieved in this direction are investigated.

Political Integration of Lake Chad basin

Political integration in Lake Chad Free trade-related areas including economic investment policy, Andriamahatana and Chidede, (2018) stated that signed at the same time as the Establishment of the Protocol to the Treaty Establishing the African Economic Community relating to the Free Movement of Persons, Right of Residence and Right of Establishment African Union, (2018) captures the commitment of AU Member States to establish Mechanisms for the free movement of people, capital, goods and services so as to promote integration of the African people, and facilitate intra-African trade, investment and mobility of labour. These freedoms shall be realized progressively, by first implementing the right of entry and abolition of visa requirements, implementing the right of residence, and finally implementing the right of establishment. Further analysis of the Protocol on Free Movement is provided in.

Afesorgbor and Bergeijk (2014), reiterated that to identify the major trade barriers that affect intra‐regional of Lake Chad basin commission trade, the variables included in the estimations are those that appear in the traditional gravity model estimations, such as the income of the exporter, importer and distance. Starting point for more detailed negotiations on trade in goods and services and other trade-related issues such as competition, investment and intellectual property rights. It comprises three frameworks: An overarching Establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Area; A Protocol on Trade in Goods, comprising a framework of general obligations, as well as provision for national schedules of tariff concessions yet to be negotiated; Protocol on Trade in services, also comprising a framework of general obligations, with provision for Annexes, sectoral and cross-cutting and national schedules of specific commitments, also yet to be negotiated.

Also the key step towards achieving the vision of Lake Chad basin commission Community, set out in the Abuja treaty, to established of the following objectives: to promote economic, social and cultural development and the integration of African economies in order to increase economic self-reliance and promote an endogenous and self-sustained development; and also to establish, a continental scale, of framework for the development, mobilization and utilization of the human and material resources of Africa in order to achieve self-reliant development; to promote cooperation in all fields of human endeavor in order to raise the standard of living of African peoples, and maintain and enhance economic stability, foster close and peaceful relations among Member States and contribute to the progress, development and the economic integration of the Continent; and to coordinate and harmonize policies among existing and future economic communities in order to foster the gradual establishment of the Community, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa,( 2017).

More recently, in 2013 during the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), African Heads of State and Government launched Agenda 2063, which is described as ‘a shared framework for inclusive growth and sustainable development for Africa to be realized in the next fifty years. It is a continuation of the pan-African drive over centuries, for unity, self-determination, freedom, progress and collective prosperity pursued under Pan-Africanism and African Renaissance. It builds on and seeks to accelerate the implementation of past and existing continental initiatives for growth and sustainable development.’ Member States emphasized a guiding vision ‘to build an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven and managed by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in the international arena.

Country can gain from strategic trade policy. New theories of international trade that emphasize monopolistic competition and international Oligopolies have led some economists to think that free trade may be out of date (Krugman 1986). The new theories of trade have emphasized the importance of economies of scale, learning curves, and innovation. These new theories are incompatible with the assumption of perfect competition that lies behind the classical argument for free trade. Thus, in a real world environment, some have argued, a country might be able to follow an activist trade policy that promotes domestic industries at the expense of foreign competitors. Strategic trade policy is usually based on one of two key ideas. The first is that a domestic industry is part of a world industry that earns monopoly profits. Subsidizing a domestic firm can secure more of the world’s monopoly profits for a country. The second is that a particular industry, such as semiconductors, may confer spillover benefits on other domestic industries by lowering their costs and raising their rates of return. In this latter case, subsidizing the industry generating the spillover benefits may improve a country’s total real income. Proposals for the use of trade protection to benefit the domestic economy at the possible expenses of other countries have a long history.

For many years, trade theorists have recognized the possibility that through a tariff a large country may be able to raise revenue by, in effect, getting smaller foreign countries to pay indirectly into the national treasury. This rationale has been called the optimum tariff argument. The difficulties with all such trade policy arguments are threefold. First, such policies assume that foreign governments will not retaliate. Foreign retaliation can reverse any potential gain anticipated from domestic protection. Second, as discussed in more detail later, most arguments for protection assume that tariffs and subsidies are imposed by a benevolent dictator, rather than political parties representing special interest groups. Most trade policy decisions, however, are not determined by what is in the best interests of the whole country; usually they are the result of political lobbying. Finally, strategic trade policy conclusions are based on theoretical models, but the implementation of the policy relies heavily on empirical estimates of industry demand and supply that can vary substantially over time. Given these problems, it is unlikely that any government could, even if it had the power to do so, implement the optimal policy (Grossman 1986).

Ackah (2012), focused on Critics of free trade often claim that protection of domestic industries saves jobs. This rationale proceeds at two levels. First, the economically sophisticated argument holds that the benefits of free trade are derived from theoretical models that assume the economy has full employment. Because there is unemployment in the economy, free trade is not necessarily optimal because unemployment might actually increase, It is true that theoretical arguments for free trade assume full employment and are taken from a simplified version of reality, but these assumptions work well in practice. In fact, absence of free trade may be more correlated to unemployment than the presence of free trade. The most important event in the history of U.S. protection was the 1930 Smoot–Hawley bill, which substantially raised tariff rates. The Smoot–Hawley tariff inspired a trade war between the United States and Europe that may have prolonged and deepened the Great Depression of the 1930s (Meltzer 1976).

Crawford, (2012) studies on the Arguments for free trade, however, should not be based on jobs claims. Free trade is not about the number of jobs, but about the types of jobs and standards of living, experience shows that unemployment changes substantially over the course of business cycles but, over time, the number of jobs roughly equals the size of the working-age population. What matters in the long run is the type of future jobs that are available. If the goal of policy, were to keep jobs, today we would have thriving horse-drawn carriage and blacksmith industries. By keeping the same jobs we have always had we discourage the development of new high-skill jobs that add to the stock of knowledge and generate innovation and growth. A second argument simply holds that imports of textiles, consumer electronics, and automobiles cost domestic textile workers, electronics workers, and auto workers their good jobs and force them to take bad jobs. In other words, imports supposedly displace domestic workers. The slogan, “American goods create American jobs,” has become a rallying cry, but often such sentiments are rooted in the fallacy of composition. What is true for the part is not necessarily true for the whole.

It is certainly true that imports of textiles or cars can destroy African textile or automobile jobs. But it is not true that imports reduce the number of jobs in a country. A big increase in imports will inevitably cause an increase in exports or foreign investment. In other words, if Africa suddenly wanted more Japanese cars, eventually Africa exports would have to increase to pay for these goods. The jobs lost in one industry are replaced by jobs gained in another industry. In a capitalist society, progress entails what Joseph Schumpeter called “creative destruction. Fundamentally, new job opportunities destroy old job opportunities. The rise of manufacturing in the twentieth century destroyed jobs in farming. Jobs in the automobile and airline industries destroyed jobs in the railroad industry, Imports are just another way of producing goods.

Politically customs Cooperation and Mutual Administrative Assistance provides a framework for simplification and harmonization of customs laws and procedures at the continental level using international standards derived from the World Customs Organization and World Trade Organization. First, it requires Member States to apply the World Customs Organization Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (HS, as amended) as the basis for classification of goods in the national tariffs. Second, it requires harmonization of regulations and practices based on the Agreement on Implementation, of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, (Mevel and Karingi 2012).

The Agreement on Customs Valuation, 1994. Harmonization of customs procedures is to be based on the World Customs Organization Revised International Convention for the Simplification and Harmonization of Customs Procedures (Revised Kyoto Convention, 2004). Finally, exchange of information among customs administrations for the purpose of prevention, investigation and suppression of Customs offences is to be carried out based on protocols derived from the World Customs Organization International Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance for the Prevention, Investigation and Suppression of Customs Offences

It has been noted that as tariffs are eliminated in trade agreements, and as rules on transparency and openness begin to impact trade, non-tariff measures, some of which can constitute non-tariff barriers have risen in use as noted previously, often as tools of protectionism against imports are policy measures, other than ordinary customs tariffs, that can potentially have an economic impact on international trade in goods, changing quantities traded, or prices or both and thus increase or decrease trade. And other organizations have examined and developed tools to address, in consultation with several international organizations, has developed a comprehensive typology of non-tariff measures and is collecting data on these measures. Covers 56 countries accounting for 80 per cent of world trade. It is the most comprehensive non-tariff measure, data base containing more than thirty-eight thousand measures.The information in the database covers a broad range of policy instruments, including traditional trade policy instruments such as import prohibitions, quotas or price controls, export subsidies, export restrictions, as well as regulatory and technical measures that stem from important non-trade objectives, related to health and environmental protection.( Afesorgbor, and Bergeijk 2014),

At the inception of any tariff-reduction negotiations, it is essential to agree on the base from which tariffs are to be removed. In order for the Continental free Trade area to have a real impact on trade, it makes sense for all tariff reduction discussions to use the currently applied tariffs, rather than bound tariffs, as their starting point. Similarly, agreement is needed on the latest Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding Harmonized System applicable, to integrate the largest number of “new products” into the tariff reduction mix. The practical proposal in this regard could be the following, Agree that all existing tariffs bound at zero will stay that way, and that they will not be considered further in the negotiations; raising them would in any case become troublesome because other World Trade Organization members could seek compensation, thus initiating an unrelated negotiation and/or dispute; Agree that all tariffs bound above zero, but with an applied rate of zero, will be eliminated from the entry into force of the agreement .i.e., reduced to zero; Agree that all tariff lines for goods entering at zero under temporary concession schemes, autonomous tariff quotas and the like, will also be eliminated from the entry into force of the agreement; and, Agree that all applied tariff rates of 5 per cent or less will be eliminated on entry into force of the agreement.

Theoretical Framework

Since the purpose of theory is to help predict and understand phenomenal and to identify the important variable that may be related to Regionalism theory shall be examined.

Regional Integration theory

Regionalism is a theory that explains the presentation of common identity towards achieving economic and political development by lowering tariffs and utilizes the commonalities within region for development purpose (Sapir, 1992). Regional integration is a conscious attempt on the part of states within a region or sub-region to integrate their economies and politics for purposeful development. It is a form of agenda setting to regional development and progress.

The main difference between regionalism and regional integration is that while regionalism is a theory that promotes identity formation towards achieving development regional integration is a form of mechanism towards promoting such regional identity. In a way, both are interwoven and can be used interchangeably with clarifications. Regionalism can thus be defined as an attempt on the part of states within a geographical setting to identify with one another in order to lower tariffs and engage in free trade to propel progress and development (Bhagwati, 1999). It is an attempt at locking in reforms within a region.

Thus, regional integration has been perceived differently by various scholars of the subject. In an effort to discuss regional integration an extant and very important question arises: what is regional integration? There is no precise answer to this question. Available literatures on regional integration suggest that there are different approaches to and definitions of regional integration. According to (Anyanwu, J. C. 2014), regional integration refers to the process whereby territorially-based sub-systems increase their level of cooperation.

Hoekman and Nicita (2011) view it as a “worldwide phenomenon of territorial systems that increase the interactions between their components and create new forms of organization, co-existing with traditional forms of state-led organization at the national level.” But Moore (2006) perceived regional integration as “a combination of the growth of societal integration within a region, regional awareness and identity, regional inter-state cooperation and state-promoted regional economic integration.” To some authors (Ruggie, 1992; Vamvakidis, 1998; De Melo & Panagariya, 1995) cooperation can be in the area(s) of trade, economic and monetary policies or peace and security as well as in the political, social and cultural aspects of governance. Owing to the nature of political borders and political disintegration, the proliferation of regional integration became more pronounced in the post-World War II period.

The number of independent countries is now three times greater than it was in 1945. In contrast, there are also examples of the opposite process, wherein states come together as a unit. Integration as a concept refers either to a state of affairs or to a process. Considering these two meanings, integration as a state of affairs refers to the degree of internal coherence in a system, while as a process it refers to the development through which more internal coherence in a system is achieved. Specifically, according Medvedev, to and Johnston (2006), economic and political integration are complementary to each other.

In this regard, political integration when seen as an entity designates the degree of internal coherence in political systems. Risse (2015) defines political integration as the cooperation between states and formation of state-based regimes, while Rittberger and Schroeder (2016:580) defines international political integration as "a process whereby a group of people organized at the outset in two or more independent states, comes to constitute a political whole which can in some sense be described as a community." In the same vein, Lindberg (1963) views political integration as the process whereby nations forego the desire and ability to conduct foreign and key domestic policies independently of each other, and seek to make decisions or delegate the decision making process to central organs. Integration is also described as a process whereby an inter-governmental organisation representing three or more countries pools their resources together with a view to creating a larger and more open economy to benefit member countries (Ruggie, 1993).

On the other hand, economic integration also has a dual aspect. One aspect refers to the establishment of an international division of labour and international markets, while the other relates to the establishment of common rules for the economy and/or common economic institutions and policies. Regional economic integration is essentially characterized by the formation of regional cooperation groups of countries with a liberalized intra-community trade and increased mobility of factors of production (Economic integration, when not accompanied by political integration, can lead to less innovation and slower growth.

It is assumed that when economic integration is accompanied by political integration, innovation and growth will be stronger and welfare higher. International political (along with economic) integration has occurred in Europe, where nation states have imposed limits on their sovereign use of certain policies (e.g. fiscal policy), have delegated control over some relevant competencies, such as trade policy and antitrust, to the EU and are debating further political integration. The questions now are: (1) of what benefits are multilateralism and regional integration to states? And (2) why are they necessary to state within the regional system? These questions will guide the next direction of the research. (Vamvakidis, 1998).

Nwokoye (2018) observed that the successive military rulers sought to wish away socio-cultural differences and impose uniformity in spite of complex cultural diversity. Unfortunately, the more such projects were pursued, the more acute the contradictions become, the more conflicts erupted; and the more problems were created, which posed obstacles to unity, peaceful coexistence, progress and stable development. In this study, regional integration can be well- established in “unity in diversity”.

Conflict: Conflicts can originate from stereotypes and prejudice against people of other race or ethnicity (Adegbonmire 2016). The struggle to maintain one’s identity in the face of aggression from a more predominant race can escalate into mass violence and chaos. Conflict is also a consequence of poor governance, presence of an illegitimate government, absence of the rule of law, and the denial of individual rights in the Lake Chad region.

Defence: According to Bassey & Dokubo (2011) the defence policy of Lake Chad region among all odds still remains problematic. This involves the imperative necessity of making explicit judgment about the scope and direction of defence policy commitments as well as the conditions for processing the ability (structure, magnitude and institutional parameters of Nigeria’s defence establishment) to meet these functions and challenges of Lake Chad basin commission on Socio- Economy Development.

Security: Hughes (2006) reiterated the importance of environmental security should be based on agenda rather than concentrating on one issue.

Theory and practice of free trade

Theory and practice of free trade is now widely used in the debate. In order to understand more about what is ‘new’ in this new regionalism free trade, one can differentiate between a variety of partly overlapping and partly competing distinctions and meanings. To begin, many scholars and policy-makers refer to the new regionalism as the current wave or era of regionalism free trade i.e. new in a temporal sense.(2008) argue that, cross-national free trade or community interaction and interdependencies have existed far back in history ‘regionalized world is therefore not a novelty, but an integrated part of human history’ It is thus evident that often old regionalism free trade and new regionalism free trade are distinguished by referring to waves or generations of regionalism. Some theorists refer to the protectionist trend of the 1930s as the first main wave of regionalism free trade. More frequently, however, it is argued that voluntary and comprehensive regionalism is predominantly a post-Second World War phenomenon. We may therefore speak of several generations and varieties of post-Second World War regionalism, there have been two main waves of regionalism, which are often referred to as the old and the new regionalism, the first wave had its roots in the devastating experience of inter-war nationalism and the Second World War.

Research Methodology

The study adopted secondary method focusing on the interpretative research design. The interpretive research design was chosen as appropriate for this study because it is well-suited for exploring hidden reasons behind complex, interrelated, or multifaceted social processes, such as Assess liberalization of free trade in West Africa, examine free trade-related areas including economic investment, policy, Assess customs matters and the implementation of trade measures, examine a mechanism for the settlement of disputes politically. Out of four (4) the members of Economic communities Lake Chad Basin commission, Chad, Cameroon Niger, and Nigeria,

The target population for this study is the community member of four (4) countries of Economic communities Lake Chad Basin commission, Chad, Cameroon Niger, and Nigeria,

Results and Discussions

The result of this study revealed that substantial number of the members of established the Multilateral Agreement of Lake Chad Basin Commission on Socio-Economy Development of Chad Cameroon Niger and Nigeria. Nigerian Government is participation in the economic communities of lake chad basin commission in the area of economic Development in terms of free trade good governance and political relations with the four (4) African countries to control and provide political and economic stability in the west African state, but is not yet agreed to sign in to one single currency in the continent for purpose of trade relations in the area of integration economic activities of the west African state.

The result of this study also shows that in order to there are several studies on Multilateral Agreement of Lake Chad basin commission on Socio- Economy Development of Chad Cameroon Niger and Nigeria. United Nation, (2016) who studied on African continental free trade area, Policy, and Negotiation Options for Trade in Goods. Also Khorana, (2014) multilateral agreements and global Governance of International trade regimes. Rajesh, (2018) who studied on, A Business guide to the African continental free trade Area agreement. Also Eytan, (2002) Multilateral Cooperation, Integration and Regimes: The Case of International Labour Mobility. From the colonial period to the present. Most of these studies have not explore extensively on Multilateral Agreement of Lake Chad basin commission on Socio- Economy Development of Chad Cameroon Niger and Nigeria.

The study also shows that in order to ensure the equal participation of the free trade and economic development to improved political participation relations of the economic communities of Lake Chad basin commission state in terms of border patrol migrations and customs to control in legal activities in the region.

Conclusion

It is understood that the need to apply logical insight into comprehending the challenge and extending solutions to the issues of Regional integration is an imperative for the member state. The study advocates Multilateral Agreement of Lake Chad basin commission on Socio- Economy Development of Chad Cameroon Niger and Nigeria., The failure to maintain multilateral trade liberalisation is switching off the main engine of growth of the world economy, and the world trade organisation is persisting with rules that were devised when our understanding of free global trade and free regional trade was quite different than it is today, It articulated the formation of a continental free trade area as a stepping stone toward the realisation of the African Economic Community. Momentum towards implementing this objective gathered speed with the formation of the African Union in 2002, replacing the OAU. AU member States paid greater attention to continental integration, with the particular emphases on Multilateral Agreement of Lake Chad basin commission on Socio- Economy Development of Chad Cameroon Niger and Nigeria.

Recommendations

 Based on the findings, the study recommended that,there is urgent need for further reforms to clear the political interference by the African and Nigerian government in the control of the affairs of multilateral Agreement of Lake Chad basin commission on Socio- Economy Development of Chad Cameroon Niger and Nigeria., and liberalization of free trade in West Africa state, to provided free trade policy of non-customs tariff for the Lake Chad basin commission. Implementation of free trade matters and trade measures should be in approach through collaboration/partnership to enable the communities feel the presence of communities of Lake Chad basin commission in their localities.

The customs commission should provide adequate training and retraining of staff to serve as incentives and employee motivation, rewards and recognition towards discharging their responsibilities on the African unity, on the free trade-related areas including economic investment policy for Lake Chad basin commission, the Lake Chad basin commission and African government should provide the mechanism that can be solving their problem within the region politically, such as African union, Economic communities of West African state, West African free trade, Organization of African Unity, Regional trade agreements.

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