The East African Community Perspective

Welcome my series of looking in to The East African Perspectives. In this series of discussion I will look on to several areas; these include historical background of the East African community and its development agenda.

Historical Background

(Source: EAC Website http://www.eac.int/)

According to the East African Community website, the Permanent Tripartite Commission for East African Co-operation was first formed in 1967 as the East African Community. It collapsed in 1977 due to political differences. Following the dissolution of the organisation, former Member States negotiated a Mediation Agreement for the Division of Assets and Liabilities, which they signed in 1984. However, as one of the provisions of the Mediation Agreement, the three States agreed to explore areas of future co-operation and to make concrete arrangements for such co-operation.

Subsequent meetings of the three Heads of State led to the signing of the Agreement for the Establishment of the Permanent Tripartite Commission for East African Co-operation on November 30, 1993. Full East African Co-operation efforts began on March 14, 1996 when the Secretariat of the Permanent Tripartite Commission was launched at the Headquarters of the EAC in Arusha, Tanzania.

Considering the need to consolidate regional co-operation, the East African Heads of State, at their second Summit in Arusha on 29 April 1997, directed the Permanent Tripartite Commission to start the process of upgrading the Agreement establishing the Permanent Tripartite Commission for East African Co-operation into a Treaty.

During a one-day summit in Arusha, Tanzania on 22 January 1999, the Heads of State of Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda resolved to sign the Treaty re-establishing the East African Community (EAC) by the end of July 1999. The community was to take over from the Permanent Tripartite Commission for East African Co-operation.

In addition to a decision to re-establish the East African Community by the end of 1999, other issues raised at the EAC Summit of January 1999 included the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on Foreign Policy Co-ordination; Zero tariff rates to be adopted by 1 July 1999 and the implementation of COMESA's 80% tariff reduction objective at the same time; setting up of a mechanism to deal with terrorism in the region; and postponement in admitting Rwanda and Burundi to the EAC