Failure and Theoratical Criticism of the Economic Integration as Peace Building Mechanism in the African Grand Lac Region

Author(s)	Mr. polycarpe osomba okolongo
Country	Turkey
Abstract	This research uses trade and economic interdependence as lenses to evaluate the limits of liberal peace theory in conflict zones. For centuries, liberal theory (Montesquieu's "soft commerce", and Kant's "democratic peace") has posited that regional economic integration is an important catalyst for peace and political stability within regions. Although the liberal framework was successful in shaping regional structures such as the European Union, Mercosur, and ASEAN after WWII; it faces both theoretical and empirical criticism from structural and dependency theorists who claim that global capitalism may contribute to underdevelopment and instability. This study will utilize these competing theories to examine why regional economic integration has been unable to create or sustain enduring peace in the African Great Lakes region. The study also illustrates the complexity of variables which prevent trade-induced stability in developing countries, through analyzing the disconnection between classical liberal optimism and reality in regional economies.
Keywords	Liberal Peace Theory; Economic Integration; Trade Interdependence; Great Lakes Region; Conflict Resolution; Structural Theory.
Field	Sociology > Politics
Published In	Volume 8, Issue 5, September-October 2026
Published On	2026-10-13
DOI	https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i05.89638

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