The purpose of this study is to provide an empirical analysis of some of the impacts of international financial integration on economic activity and macro-economic volatility in African countries. The results of empirical analysis show that the impact of external capital flows on growth seems to depend mainly on the initial conditions and policies implemented to stabilize foreign investment, increase domestic investment, productivity and trade, develop the domestic financial system, expand trade openness and other actions aimed at stimulating growth and reducing poverty. The analysis also shows that financial instability was particularly severe as from the nineties. The instability was more pronounced in the case of portfolio investments than in foreign direct investments because of the longer-term relationship established by the latter.