Abstract:
East African Community from a traditional three states to the current six states has undergone different experiences in
her cooperation and integration process from the pre-independence, the independence era, and post-independence era
which suits the definition of the contemporary era. The context of the contemporary global political economy revolves
around a post-tripartite trading block among neighboring states, shaped by empirical theory (what is the question) as
opposed to the normative theory of “what ought to be”. Such realities are relationships based in forms of amity and
enmity in the process of competition between citizens/states over policy preferences and interests. The resultant effects
lead to; first, shifts in patterns of cooperation and integration, and secondly, the existence of durability and endurability
in cooperation and integration. After examination and assessment of the effects respectively in relation to the East
African experience, this article/presentation proposes a need to transcend the above enmity for amity in East African
Community Cooperation and Integration process. Underscoring the existence of amity and enmity in state cooperation
and integration in a region such as EAC defines a Regional Security Complex due to socio-eco-political beneficial
security interdependences and existing vs potential conflicts. The need for a unified developmental-centric approach
through cooperation and integration by EAC from the foregoing prompts the need for the application of Regional
Security Complex Theory (RSCT) by Buzan and Waver.
