Lessons from Latin America: MERCOSUR

Abstract

The Mercado Común del Sur (MERCOSUR), or Southern Common Market, was once regarded as among the most successful examples of the new regionalism among developing countries. But the unsteady evolution of Latin America’s common market since the 1990s offers several lessons for African countries. It sheds light on both the challenges and the opportunities that developing countries face in the construction and maintenance of regional groupings in a context of increased economic interdependence and asymmetric power distribution. Indeed, the case of MERCOSUR is particularly relevant to some African groupings, such as the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Southern African Customs Union (SACU), given the prevailing asymmetries of power among member states.