Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A new $508,000 initiative launched by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), in partnership with TradeMark Africa (TMA) and the East African Business Council (EABC), will empower 3,000 farmers, processors, and private proprietors, along with 220 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) across East …
Read More »Kenya bans sugar imports from outside COMESA, EAC
NAIROBI, Kenya | Xinhua | Kenya on Tuesday imposed a ban on sugar imports from outside the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the East African Community (EAC), two regional trade blocs, citing an increase in local production. Andrew Karanja, cabinet secretary for the Ministry of Agriculture …
Read More »EAC governments asked to stop lip service and fund education
ARUSHA, TANZANIA | THE INDEPENDENT | Governments across the East African region need to stop giving lip service to the Education Sector and breathe life into the recent reforms with adequate funding. Tanzanian Vice President Dr Philip Isdor Mpango says that the educational reforms that EAC member states have embarked on …
Read More »COMESA, EAC, SADC bloc enforcement starts today
ACCRA, GHANA | THE INDEPENDENT | The COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) Agreement, is now due to come into force on Thursday following the attainment of the required number of ratifying member countries. The treaty states that for the Agreement to take effect, at least 14 out of the 29 States …
Read More »Youth seek revival of original EAC spirit through pilgrimage to Nyerere’s grave
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Youth proponents advocating for the political integration of the East African region are striving to reawaken the original spirit of the regional bloc through a visit to the burial site of Julius Nyerere. Nyerere, the former Tanzanian independence leader, is believed to be the original …
Read More »Why calls for amending East African Community treaty are growing louder
ANALYSIS | RONALD MUSOKE | In response to the growing calls to have the East African Community Treaty amended to reflect its current state, regional foreign and East African Community affairs ministers have demanded the process be accelerated. This was one of the resolutions reached by the ministers from Burundi, DR …
Read More »EAC launches election mission to observe Rwanda polls
KIGALI, Rwanda | Xinhua | The East African Community (EAC), a regional bloc, launched its election observer mission Friday to monitor Rwanda’s upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections. Veronica Mueni Nduva, secretary general of the EAC, inaugurated the observer mission in Kigali, the Rwandan capital, where she appointed David Maraga, former …
Read More »Experts urge EAC to adopt Kiswahili as official regional language
ARUSHA, Tanzania | Xinhua | Experts on Sunday renewed their calls for the East African Community (EAC) Council of Ministers to expedite amendments to the EAC Treaty to enable Kiswahili as the regional bloc’s official language. In a statement from the EAC headquarters in Arusha Monday, experts urged all member …
Read More »Free movement for East Africans, finally?
What to expect from Uganda signing IGAD Protocol COVER STORY | RONALD MUSOKE | Uganda has finally signed the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) protocol that allows lawful free movement in and out of citizens of the countries of the East and Horn of Africa region. By signing of the Protocol …
Read More »EAC countries trained on chemical weapons and risk response
Wakiso, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | East African Community countries are building their capacity and preparedness to respond to chemical attacks and disasters. With support from the United Kingdom, the Organisation for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is now training core personnel in the bloc to first build awareness and understanding …
Read More »