Promoting Peer Review as a Compliance Mechanism for Regional Integration

The policy brief examines the utility of peer review as a 'soft law' compliance mechanism, drawing on global examples like the WTO and OECD to suggest how African regional economic communities (RECs) could implement similar systems. It specifically proposes that the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), which currently focuses on national governance, could be supplemented with regional reviews to better track progress on monetary, trade, and investment integration.

• Peer review is described as a non-adversarial, 'soft law' process that can be more effective at encouraging compliance, especially in poorly performing countries, than traditional enforcement mechanisms.
• The African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) currently lacks a regional focus; while it includes objectives to 'Accelerate and deepen regional integration in the monetary, trade and investment domain,' its reviews are conducted only on a national basis.
• The authors recommend that regional economic communities (RECs) in Africa establish peer review systems to monitor compliance with regional commitments, serving as a complement to existing legal dispute settlement processes.
• Effective implementation of a regional peer review process would require addressing several challenges, including the need for a professional secretariat, sustainable African funding, and a more focused sectoral or thematic scope to avoid the over-ambition seen in the APRM.
• There is a risk of perceived imbalance in regional review mechanisms if dominant economies exert undue influence, citing the perception of US influence in the IMF as a parallel to potential roles for South Africa in SADC or Nigeria in ECOWAS.
• The document notes that the APRM has struggled with efficiency, with only 17 countries completing a first review and none completing a subsequent review as of the writing.

APA

Makokera, C. G., & Gruzd, S. (2014). Promoting Peer Review as a Compliance Mechanism for Regional Integration. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Policy-Briefing-106.pdf

Chicago

Makokera, Catherine Grant, and Steven Gruzd. Promoting Peer Review as a Compliance Mechanism for Regional Integration. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2014. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Policy-Briefing-106.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Makokera |first1=Catherine Grant |last2=Gruzd |first2=Steven |title=Promoting Peer Review as a Compliance Mechanism for Regional Integration |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=September 2014 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Policy-Briefing-106.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{makokera2014promoting, author = {Makokera, Catherine Grant and Gruzd, Steven}, title = {{Promoting Peer Review as a Compliance Mechanism for Regional Integration}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2014}, month = sep, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Policy-Briefing-106.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }