IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/weltar/v161y2025i1d10.1007_s10290-024-00558-0.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Patterns of global and regional integration in the East African Community

Author

Listed:
  • Sebastian Krantz

    (Kiel Institute for the World Economy)

Abstract

Using detailed global trade and novel Multi-Region Input–Output data, this paper examines the East African Community’s (EAC) global and regional integration through trade, global, and regional value chains (GVCs and RVCs). With surgical attention to detail, the first part of the paper dissects key patterns and trends of EAC members’ participation in global and regional trade and production networks at the aggregate, bilateral, sectoral, and bilateral-sectoral levels. The second part then provides causal reduced-form evidence for the economic benefits of EAC integration through trade, GVCs, and RVCs at the sector level. Findings imply that the region is moderately integrated into GVCs and RCVs but shows no overall trend towards greater integration. Regional integration is advancing in agriculture and food processing, and Kenya is becoming a more dominant regional supplier of manufactures. Integration through trade and GVCs positively affects economic development in the region, particularly deeper forward GVC linkages in manufacturing. Deepening regional trade and forward linkages yields additional economic benefits vis-a-vis global linkages.

Suggested Citation

  • Sebastian Krantz, 2025. "Patterns of global and regional integration in the East African Community," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 161(1), pages 151-230, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:weltar:v:161:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s10290-024-00558-0
    DOI: 10.1007/s10290-024-00558-0
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10290-024-00558-0
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10290-024-00558-0?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ronald E. Miller & Umed Temurshoev, 2017. "Output Upstreamness and Input Downstreamness of Industries/Countries in World Production," International Regional Science Review, , vol. 40(5), pages 443-475, September.
    2. Pol Antràs & Davin Chor, 2013. "Organizing the Global Value Chain," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 81(6), pages 2127-2204, November.
    3. Robert Koopman & Zhi Wang & Shang-Jin Wei, 2014. "Tracing Value-Added and Double Counting in Gross Exports," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(2), pages 459-494, February.
    4. Pol Antras & Davin Chor & Thibault Fally & Russell Hillberry, 2012. "Measuring the Upstreamness of Production and Trade Flows," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 102(3), pages 412-416, May.
    5. Guillaume Daudin & Christine Rifflart & Danielle Schweisguth, 2011. "Who produces for whom in the world economy?," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 44(4), pages 1403-1437, November.
    6. David H. Romer & Jeffrey A. Frankel, 1999. "Does Trade Cause Growth?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 89(3), pages 379-399, June.
    7. Cosimo Beverelli & Victor Stolzenburg & Robert B. Koopman & Simon Neumueller, 2019. "Domestic value chains as stepping stones to global value chain integration," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(5), pages 1467-1494, May.
    8. James Feyrer, 2019. "Trade and Income—Exploiting Time Series in Geography," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 11(4), pages 1-35, October.
    9. Dennis Novy, 2013. "Gravity Redux: Measuring International Trade Costs With Panel Data," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 51(1), pages 101-121, January.
    10. Marcel Timmer & Abdul A. Erumban & Reitze Gouma & Bart Los & Umed Temurshoev & Gaaitzen J. de Vries & I–aki Arto & Valeria Andreoni AurŽlien Genty & Frederik Neuwahl & JosŽ M. Rueda?Cantuche & Joseph , 2012. "The World Input-Output Database (WIOD): Contents, Sources and Methods," IIDE Discussion Papers 20120401, Institue for International and Development Economics.
    11. Baldwin, Richard & Robert-Nicoud, Frédéric, 2014. "Trade-in-goods and trade-in-tasks: An integrating framework," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(1), pages 51-62.
    12. Abdullah Altun & Ilker Ibrahim Avsar & Taner Turan & Halit Yanikkaya, 2023. "Does global value chain participation boost high technology exports?," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 35(5), pages 820-837, July.
    13. Dani Rodrik, 2018. "New Technologies, Global Value Chains, and the Developing Economies," CESifo Working Paper Series 7307, CESifo.
    14. Cristina Constantinescu & Aaditya Mattoo & Michele Ruta, 2019. "Does vertical specialisation increase productivity?," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(8), pages 2385-2402, August.
    15. Francis Lwesya, 2022. "Integration into regional or global value chains and economic upgrading prospects: an analysis of the East African Community (EAC) bloc," Future Business Journal, Springer, vol. 8(1), pages 1-14, December.
    16. Pol Antràs & Alonso de Gortari, 2020. "On the Geography of Global Value Chains," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 88(4), pages 1553-1598, July.
    17. Huan YAN & Xiaojing LI & Shuang MENG, 2023. "Global Value Chain Participation and Sustainable Growth: Evidence from China," Journal for Economic Forecasting, Institute for Economic Forecasting, vol. 0(2), pages 5-20, June.
    18. Sebastian Benz & Mario Larch & Markus Zimmer, 2015. "Trade in ideas: outsourcing and knowledge spillovers," International Economics and Economic Policy, Springer, vol. 12(2), pages 221-237, June.
    19. Kailan Tian & Erik Dietzenbacher & Richard Jong‐A‐Pin, 2022. "Global value chain participation and its impact on industrial upgrading," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(5), pages 1362-1385, May.
    20. Victor Stolzenburg & Daria Taglioni & Deborah Winkler, 2019. "Economic upgrading through global value chain participation: which policies increase the value-added gains?," Chapters, in: Stefano Ponte & Gary Gereffi & Gale Raj-Reichert (ed.), Handbook on Global Value Chains, chapter 30, pages 483-505, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    21. Richard Baldwin & Javier Lopez-Gonzalez, 2015. "Supply-chain Trade: A Portrait of Global Patterns and Several Testable Hypotheses," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(11), pages 1682-1721, November.
    22. Van Campenhout, Bjorn & Nabwire, Leocardia & Minten, Bart & Ariong, Richard M., 2020. "Institutional and technological innovations to foster agro-industrialization in Uganda: Insights from the dairy value chain," Project notes April 2020, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    23. Abdoulganiour Almame Tinta, 2017. "The determinants of participation in global value chains: The case of ECOWAS," Cogent Economics & Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 5(1), pages 1389252-138, January.
    24. Hummels, David & Ishii, Jun & Yi, Kei-Mu, 2001. "The nature and growth of vertical specialization in world trade," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(1), pages 75-96, June.
    25. Manfred Lenzen & Daniel Moran & Keiichiro Kanemoto & Arne Geschke, 2013. "Building Eora: A Global Multi-Region Input-Output Database At High Country And Sector Resolution," Economic Systems Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(1), pages 20-49, March.
    26. Jingwen Huo & Peipei Chen & Klaus Hubacek & Heran Zheng & Jing Meng & Dabo Guan, 2022. "Full‐scale, near real‐time multi‐regional input–output table for the global emerging economies (EMERGING)," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 26(4), pages 1218-1232, August.
    27. Jean Balié & Davide Del Prete & Emiliano Magrini & Pierluigi Montalbano & Silvia Nenci, 2019. "Does Trade Policy Impact Food and Agriculture Global Value Chain Participation of Sub-Saharan African Countries?," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 101(3), pages 773-789.
    28. Bhushan Praveen Jangam & Badri Narayan Rath, 2021. "Does global value chain participation enhance domestic value‐added in exports? Evidence from emerging market economies," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 26(2), pages 1681-1694, April.
    29. Stefan Pahl & Marcel P. Timmer, 2020. "Do Global Value Chains Enhance Economic Upgrading? A Long View," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(9), pages 1683-1705, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Nenci, Silvia & Fusacchia, Ilaria & Giunta, Anna & Montalbano, Pierluigi & Pietrobelli, Carlo, 2022. "Mapping global value chain participation and positioning in agriculture and food: stylised facts, empirical evidence and critical issues," Bio-based and Applied Economics Journal, Italian Association of Agricultural and Applied Economics (AIEAA), vol. 11(2), July.
    2. Charles Ackah & Holger Görg & Aoife Hanley & Cecilia Hornok, 2024. "Africa’s businesswomen – underfunded or underperforming?," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 62(3), pages 1051-1074, March.
    3. Krantz, Sebastian, 2024. "Patterns of Global and Regional Integration in the East African Community," Kiel Working Papers 2245, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel), revised 2024.
    4. Solomon Owusu, 2025. "Global value chains and aggregate productivity growth in developing countries: the role of intra-sectoral allocation and structural change," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 161(1), pages 89-119, February.
    5. Dominik Boddin, 2016. "The Role of Newly Industrialized Economies in Global Value Chains," IMF Working Papers 2016/207, International Monetary Fund.
    6. Victor Kummritz, 2016. "Do Global Value Chains Cause Industrial Development?," CTEI Working Papers series 01-2016, Centre for Trade and Economic Integration, The Graduate Institute.
    7. Lorenzo Cresti & Giovanni Dosi & Federico Riccio & Maria Enrica Virgillito, 2023. "Italy and the Trap of GVC Downgrading: Labour Dependence in the European Geography of Production," Italian Economic Journal: A Continuation of Rivista Italiana degli Economisti and Giornale degli Economisti, Springer;Società Italiana degli Economisti (Italian Economic Association), vol. 9(3), pages 869-906, November.
    8. Victor Kummritz, 2015. "Global Value Chains: Benefiting the Domestic Economy?," IHEID Working Papers 02-2015, Economics Section, The Graduate Institute of International Studies.
    9. Montalbano, Pierluigi & Nenci, Silvia, 2022. "Does global value chain participation and positioning in the agriculture and food sectors affect economic performance? A global assessment," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    10. João Amador & Sónia Cabral, 2014. "Global Value Chains: Surveying Drivers, Measures and Impacts," Working Papers w201403, Banco de Portugal, Economics and Research Department.
    11. Can Li & Qi He & Han Ji & Shengguo Yu & Jiao Wang, 2023. "Reexamining the Impact of Global Value Chain Participation on Regional Economic Growth: New Evidence Based on a Nonlinear Model and Spatial Spillover Effects with Panel Data from Chinese Cities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-31, September.
    12. Owusu, Solomon, 2021. "Powering structural transformation and productivity gains in Africa: The role of global value chains and resource endowments," MERIT Working Papers 2021-022, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    13. Bosker, Maarten & Westbrock, Bastian, 2024. "The network origins of the gains from trade," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 216(C).
    14. Baldwin, Richard & Freeman, Rebecca & Theodorakopoulos, Angelos, 2022. "Horses for courses: measuring foreign supply chain exposure," Bank of England working papers 996, Bank of England.
    15. Stojčić, Nebojša & Matić, Matija, 2024. "A journey toward global value chain upgrading: Exploring the transition from backward to forward integration," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    16. Zhi Wang & Shang-Jin Wei & Kunfu Zhu, 2013. "Quantifying International Production Sharing at the Bilateral and Sector Levels," NBER Working Papers 19677, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    17. Aleksandra Parteka & Joanna Wolszczak-Derlacz, 2020. "Wage response to global production links: evidence for workers from 28 European countries (2005–2014)," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 156(4), pages 769-801, November.
    18. Stefan Pahl & Marcel P. Timmer, 2020. "Do Global Value Chains Enhance Economic Upgrading? A Long View," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(9), pages 1683-1705, July.
    19. Araújo, Inácio Fernandes de & Perobelli, Fernando Salgueiro & Faria, Weslem Rodrigues, 2021. "Regional and global patterns of participation in value chains: Evidence from Brazil," International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 165(C), pages 154-171.
    20. Michael Sposi & Kei-Mu Yi & Jing Zhang, 2021. "Trade Integration, Global Value Chains, and Capital Accumulation," IMF Economic Review, Palgrave Macmillan;International Monetary Fund, vol. 69(3), pages 505-539, September.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    GVCs; RVCs; EAC; Trade; Regional integration; Economic development;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • F15 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Economic Integration
    • O11 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:weltar:v:161:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s10290-024-00558-0. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.