| The literature on economic integration emphasizes orthodox approaches as paramount in realizing the dual objectives of economic development and integration. In this regard, the multilateral and regional trade bloc approaches are both perceived as necessary paths in the developmental process. However, their trade-based integration is called into question by the Southern African Development Community (SADC)), which has proposed an alternative strategy calling for a greater emphasis on the region as a unit of analysis and development instead of on the state. The theories of "new regionalism" which emphasizes a multidimensional approach to integration, not in the least limited to market imperatives, informs my analysis.; The dissertation focuses on the viability and potential of an integrated development approach focusing on water, the region's common denominator. Notwithstanding its importance to regional economic development and in meeting the people's basic water requirements, the prospects, viability and importance of cooperation in the region's water sector, I argue, is the essential catalyst in enhancing both regional development and integration. This is all the more important given the role water has played in the region's political and economic history, and the contending realities of local, national and regional water resource disparities in contemporary Southern Africa. |
