The overlapping of intergovernmental organizations sharing Member States is one of the key challenges for achieving effective regional integration.

On 2 and 3 September 2016, the International Conference on ASEAN Development (ICAD) 2016 took place in Leiden. The conference aimed to draw comparative lessons from the EU for the development of the ASEAN Economic Community, which was launched in 2015.

On 21 and 22 November, a conference on Green Regionalism was co-organized by CompaRe and the Centre for Commercial Law in Asia of the Singapore Management University (SMU) Yong Pung How School of Law.

COVID-19 poses a significant barrier to intra-regional trade within the EAC, causing interminable hold-ups at the internal borders.

Intensive and decisive days are coming for the future of MERCOSUR’s external relations. In around two weeks, the regional organization’s negotiating and technical teams will publish the new conditions for the common customs tariff

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Federal Republic of Germany solidified their commitment to collaborative development with the signing of the SADC-German Framework Agreement on Development Cooperation.

Over the past two centuries, socioeconomic development has improved material living standards but has also intensified environmental pressures, including climate change and biodiversity loss.

Promotores: S.J. Edixhoven, F. Andreatta

On 18 November 2021, the Andean Community (CAN) signed an agreement with the Development Bank of Latin America for the implementation of Andean Community Interoperability - INTERCOM. This technical cooperation agreement aims to aid in trade facilitation and digitization between the Member States of…

On World Refugee Day, held every year on 20 June, we commemorate the strength, courage and perseverance of millions of refugees. Leiden University is committed to students with a refugee background. For example, the university has set up a Meeting Point and the Leiden Science Run raises money for UAF,…

Representatives of the Andean Community (Comunidad Andina/CAN) and its Member States met in Quito, Ecuador last month and approved a decision creating the ‘Andean Committee of Government Authorities on the rights of Indigenous Peoples.’

MERCOSUR recently renewed its commitment to and support for contributing to the improvement of drinking water and sanitation in Paraguay, a member state which faces challenges in this area particularly for lower socioeconomic and vulnerable groups.

Customs officials from ASEAN and Australia have agreed to jointly combat the illicit tobacco trade through further collaboration. This agreement involves a joint Task Force operation, the first of its kind conducted by ASEAN with a Dialogue Partner.

The ASEAN community formed by Brunei, Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia, Timor-Leste, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, and The Pacific Alliance formed by Chile, Colombia, México and Perú adopted the ASEAN-Pacific Alliance Work Plan (2021-2025) back in 2021.

On 23 November 2023, the Caribbean Forum, a subgroup of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States, joined forces with the EU to launch the Food Security Programme in Guyana. The implementation of this project started in December 2023 and is expected to last for four years.

At an extraordinary summit held in the Ghanaian capital of Accra, the ECOWAS states have decided to impose a string of economic, financial and diplomatic measures against Mali.

Following ASEAN Customs Transit System pilots in Cambodia, Lao, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, the ASEAN Customs Transit System (ACTS) system has now been formally launched for general use.

The report aims to establish baseline information on the Sustainable Development Goals’ indicators currently being tracked and measured within the region, at both a national and regional level. Additionally, the report summarises key findings from this data. Finally, the report also presents ways to…

Biodiversity and trade: mitigating the impacts of non-food biomass global supply chains.

China is conducting joint military exercises this week with Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam. In doing so, it is seeking to strengthen military ties with the ASEAN Member States amidst growing US presence in the region.

At the 66th Ordinary Session of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government held in Abuja, Nigeria, on 15 December 2024, a landmark decision was made to establish the Special Tribunal for The Gambia.’ (Press release by the Ministry of Justice of The Gambia)

In November, Somalia was the latest country to join the East African Community (EAC). This follows the Democratic Republic of Congo's accession to the regional intergovernmental organisation in March.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) published different statements regarding the Summits of the Asia-Europe Meetings (ASEM).

A delegation from the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) arrived in Bissau, Guinea-Bissau, on 23 February for five days. 'We need to discuss the immediate situation with all parties, but above all we need to address the root causes of the crisis,' explained Abdel-Fatau Musah, Ecowas…

The CARICOM-MERCOSUR Chamber has confirmed its participation at the ‘Trade Beyond COVID-19: Building Resilience’, a public seminar organized by the World Trade Organization.

Leaders of the ASEAN Member States, Australia, China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and New Zealand have signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement.

CompaRe’s third virtual PhD roundtable was held on 29 March 2023. In attendance were the head of the centre, staff and PhD candidates. The roundtable focused on brainstorming a wide range of questions around the research process.

On 29 January, the military administration in Myanmar sent a representative to the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat, marking the first time that a representative from Myanmar has attended a high-level ASEAN meeting in over two years.

The Team International Relations and European Studies addresses the interconnections and interdependence of contemporary global political, economic, security and culture from a multidisciplinary perspective rooted in the humanities. More specifically it is concerned with the study of international relations…

On November 22 in Arusha, Tanzania, the Council of Ministers of the East African Community (EASC) endorsed the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as its seventh Partner State. This meeting, chaired by Kenya’s EAC Affairs and Regional Development Cabinet Secretary Adan Mohamed, represents one of the…

On November 22 in Arusha, Tanzania, the Council of Ministers of the East African Community (EASC) endorsed the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as its seventh Partner State.

Latin America has seen multiple waves of regional integration, with various levels of success. The last wave foundered after the rise of nationalist politicians. But new developments require a reconsideration, including a number of new, more collaborative-minded presidents coming to power and urgent…

Lecture, European Union Seminar / CHEI Seminar

Aspergillus niger is an important industrial producer of organic acids and enzymes producing large amounts of spent fungal biomass.

What motivates learners in bilingual education to learn English and how can and do teaching practices contribute to that motivation?

In the last weeks, ASEAN published different Statements about the human rights situation in Myanmar and the Democratic People´s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

Following a series of diplomatic catastrophes and human rights violations in the country, Nicaragua has left the Organization of American States (OAS) on 19 November 2023. Unlike Brexit, where the decision to leave the EU was based on the famous 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum,…

The African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States (ACP) and the European Union have maintained a longstanding partnership known as the ACP-EU Partnership.

How to explain the apparent high success rates of the EU infringement procedures, which are the major tools for enforcing EU law, against the member states?

Lecture

What has European integration meant for the role and powers of Heads of State? And what should it mean, both at the EU and at the national level?

On 30 October 2020, Armin Cuyvers was invited to give the inaugural lecture of the European Legal Studies Centre of the Universitas Indonesia, Jakarta.