The influence of national interest on regional integration: the case of Kenya in the East African community.

Abstract

This study examined the extent to which Kenya‘s pursuit of its national interest has promoted or undermined the integration process in the East African Community (EAC) region. The study was guided by the following research question: To which extent has Kenya‘s pursuit of its national interest promoted or undermined integration process in the EAC region? The study was anchored on realist and liberalist theories to explain the extent to which Kenya's behaviour and participation in the EAC region has influenced the integration process. The two theories proved relevant for this study since in many instances, Kenya combined the use of both hard power (read force, coercion and economic sanctions) and soft power (read negotiations, mediations as well as diplomacy) to pursue its national interest within EAC region. Documentary and interview methods were used to gather data for the study. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data which was then presented in both narrative and numerical forms. The study found that Kenya's pursuit of national interest in EAC region has promoted and at the same time undermined integration process in various ways. Being the most developed economy in the region, Kenya has been benefiting asymmetrically from the larger EAC market by exporting goods and services to other EAC partner states duty free. This has promoted its national interest while at the same time undermined integration process in the region. However, on the other hand and positive to the other EAC states, Kenya‘s regional peace and security efforts have been key in boosting stability in the region. The study therefore concluded that the pursuit of Kenya‘s national interests has promoted and at the same time undermined the East African integration process. The study thus recommends that the EAC Treaty 199 needs to be reviewed in order for the integration process to move forward smoothly. However this is only possible with political goodwill from the EAC leaders. Additionally, Kenya needs to balance between pursuit of its national interest and EAC‘s collective goals.