China’s decades-long effort to unify its fragmented provincial economies offers useful lessons for African integration, according to new analysis. Despite its reputation for centralized efficiency, China long struggled with local protectionism. Provincial governments across the country prioritized local economic growth, creating internal trade barriers, duplicative regulations, and fragmented infrastructure that limited commerce across regions. However, in 2022, Beijing launched reforms to standardize market rules, improve the movement of labor, capital, and businesses, and strengthen transport and digital infrastructure. The measures led to measurable gains, including lower logistics costs, expanded interprovincial trade, and the elimination of thousands of anti-competitive policies. Analysts argue that Africa’s own integration agenda under the African Continental Free Trade Area could benefit from a similar approach. They say cheap, pooled financing for cross-border infrastructure and sustained national growth targets, rather than integration alone, could help African economies achieve similar breakthroughs.
African Business