Book Review of African Regional Trade Agreement as Legal Regimes by James Thuo Gathii

James Thuo Gathii’s book is an important contribution that broaches the question of African Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) from the perspective of normative legal and institutional analysis. Given the dearth of writings about law and the legal framework of African RTAs, the book represents a timely addition that fills a gap in the literature. Challenging the paradigm of institutional scholars and critics who measure the performance of African RTAs against the European Union standards of institutional design and effectiveness, Gathii argues that African RTAs are ‘flexible’ cooperative agreements that allow member countries to collaborate on various goals beyond narrow trade liberalization.