'This timely tour d'horizon provides an informed and nuanced overview of Africa's regional designs and discourses'. - Timothy M. Shaw, Centre for Foreign Policy Studies, Dalhousie University, Canada 'At a time when Afro-pessimism appears to dominate development discourse, Professor Asante has written a book which should rekindle interest in Africa. He ably deploys his analytic skills and wealth of experience to handle one of the most problematic issues of our time. The lucid style makes his profound ideas accessible to policy makers, lecturers and students of Africa around the world'. - Professor M.J. Balogun, Senior Regional Adviser, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa A critical appraisal of regionalism as a key strategy in Africa's development explaining the failures thus far of attempts at regional integration on the continent. This is the first text to highlight the main features of the new post-1990 regional initiatives such as the all-embracing African Economic Community and World Bank, IMF, African Development Bank, EC and French initiatives and the challenges to Africa from trading blocs elsewhere in the post-Uruguay Round environment.