This House would widen the East African Community

Widening the East African Community, will help enlarge the common market, increase production and improve regional trade as people will be able to freely do business across more than five countries.

Prior to Rwanda and Burundi’s membership to the bloc in 2004, Kenya’s exports and imports to the EAC were Kshs 64 billion and Kshs 3 billion respectively this however increased after the two countries joined creating a single market of 133.5 million people. In 2009 Kenya’s exports had risen to Kshs 90.5 billion and imports to Kshs 12.5 billion [1].

Ethiopia, DRC and South Sudan are all mineral rich countries and are big potential markets for East Africa. Welcoming them to the community is predicted to double the production, imports and exports among member states [2] due to policies policies like the EAC trade facilitation, customs union and competition policy and law [2].

 [1] Mary, Odongo,’Institute of Economic Affairs; Towards an East African Community common market’, ieakenya.or.ke, 30 Jan 2011, http://www.ieakenya.or.ke/publications/doc_details/101-towards-an-east-african-community-common-market-challenges-and-opportunities?tmpl=component

[2] Ernest & Young, ‘The East Africa boom’, ey.com, http://www.ey.com/Publication/vwLUAssets/The_East_Africa_Boom:_Dont_be_left_behind/$FILE/130219_SGF_TL_East_email_version.pdf

[3] East African Community Customs, ‘market size, access and trade policy’, eu.int, http://www.eac.int/customs/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=50:eac-trade-info&catid=25:eac-customs-union

Widening the bloc will also widen the burden of satisfying all member states which will affect economic development. The discovery of oil in Uganda has prompted concerns about how it will be extracted as a result of a green light to foreign companies to do the job [1], and Rwanda’s natural gas remain untouched due to a lack of skilled labour despite the EAC freedom of movement policies. Why then bring a bigger burden of un-extracted mineral resources that cannot be handled by EAC? And the fact that Kenya has been able to profit from such integration has not done much to lift Burundi from extreme poverty Or prevent Tanzania’s slow growth [2]. When all members are looking to export natural resources there are few benefits to the bloc, the members find themselves competing in export markets.

[1] Oil review, ‘Uganda to sign oil drilling agreement with international oil firms’, oilreviewafrica.com, 15 April 2013, http://www.oilreviewafrica.com/exploration/exploration/uganda-to-sign-oil-drilling-agreement-with-international-oil-firms

[2] IMF, ‘Truly integrated market would bring benefits to East Africa’, imf.org, 15 March 2012, https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/survey/so/2012/CAR031512A.htm

Widening the East African Community will help provide a strong force and voice against insecurities, conflicts and insurgencies that have torn apart much of the region.

The current EAC member states have been at the fore front of maintaining peace and security in the region, with Burundi, Kenya and Uganda sending troops to Somalia and Rwanda sending troops to Darfur and CAR.

In March 2012, the USAID assessment on East Africa regional conflict and instability highlighted that the revival and expansion of the EAC would favour a vision of promoting peace in the region (1) pointing out the Lamu project aimed at creating a transport corridor linking South Sudan to northern Kenya and the coast. Widening the bloc will make it easy for member states to support their peacekeeping missions through the East Africa community military command and also help reduce interstate invasions like Sudan and South Sudan or Rwanda and DRC as they will now be united with more closely aligned interests.

(1)  USAID, ‘East Africa Regional conflict and instability Assessment, usaid.gov, March 2012, http://conflict.care2share.wikispaces.net/file/view/USAID%20East%20Africa%20Conflict%20Assessment%20March2012.pdf/393864676/USAID%20East%20Africa%20Conflict%20Assessment%20March2012.pdf

The EAC is not yet ready to fully support its missions. The East African Community military command have not helped in prevention of terrorist attacks in Kenya nor has it been able to stop the prolonged insecurities and conflicts in Burundi, besides it still needs improvement. The unity between Kenya and Uganda did not stop conflicts arising over ownership of Migingo islands on lake Victoria; membership would not mean that South Sudan and Sudan suddenly have similar interests or ameliorate their conflict.

Rwanda and Uganda have been recently accused of supporting insecurity in Eastern Congo (1), and the peace keeping missions in Somalia and Darfur are both AU and UN initiatives not the EAC. In practice the bloc is not yet ready to embark on such wider missions.

(1)  Louis, Charbonneau, and Michelle, Nicholls ‘Rwanda, Uganda arming Congo rebels- UN panel’, reuters.com, 17/10/2012 http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/17/us-congo-democratic-rwanda-uganda-idUSBRE89F1RQ20121017

improvement of education among member states. It has policies such as the introduction of the inter University council of education to ensure the quality of University education, and an ongoing process of harmonising education curricula in all member countries (1). However, Africa still remains the continent with poorest quality of education and has the lowest skilled/educated labour. A large number of children fail to access basic education (2). Enlarging and deepening the EAC will therefore enhance education standards on a large part of the African continent; such policies will lift weak academic institutions in DRC, South Sudan and Somalia which are typical of their poor education systems.

(1)  East African Community Education, ‘Harmonisation of education and training curricula in East Africa’ eac.int,  http://www.eac.int/education/index.php?option=com_content&id=53&Itemid=106

(2)  Kevin Watkins, ‘Narrowing Africa’s Education deficit’, brookings.com, January 2013,  http://www.brookings.edu/research/reports/2013/01/foresight-africa-education-watkins

Widening the EAC will affect the emerging education systems. Most of the countries with interest to join the EAC are characterised by poor education systems. Bringing Somalia, South Sudan and DRC, into the community would bring a huge challenge to the existing systems. The inter university council of education is a new established body, policies like harmonising the education curricula are still in process of implementation and this cannot be rated a success at the moment let alone be expanded to millions more children and youths. Additionally, there are still current member states like Burundi with crippled education systems (1), why not first focus internally and deepen these institutions before expanding?

(1)  Concern worldwide, Burundi, ‘education’, concernusa.org http://www.concernusa.org/burundi

Nkwame Nkurumah, one of the famous African heroes said “Africa must unite or perish”. This has been taken up by the African Union which is calling for integration across the continent (1). Widening and deepening the EAC will therefore shine a light to the ideology of Pan Africanism. Bringing more African states together under one bloc with the same vision and institutions will help people to work together regardless of ethnic or cultural differences. Citizens will feel more East Africans rather than citizens of a particular country as every citizen of the EAC member state is allowed to freely travel in the region with no difficulties or discrimination as a result of the East African Community’s freedom of movement(2).  This will therefore encourage other blocs like the ECOWAS and SADC to actively perform and widen hence creating a more united Africa.

(1)  African Union, ‘Celebrating Pan –Africanism and African renaissance’, au.int, 10 May 2013, http://summits.au.int/50th/21stsummit/news/celebrating-pan-africanism-and-african-renaissance

(2)  East African Community, Towards a common market, ‘Annex on the free movement of persons’, eac.int, http://www.eac.int/commonmarket/movement-of-persons.html

Pan-Africanism is more a dream than a reality. Widening the East African Community would actually alter and destroy the meaning of Pan-Africanism because of the many challenges that come with such integration (1). Currently there are disputes within the EAC itself with Tanzania and Burundi claiming to be sidelined from the other three states. People will never at any moment feel more East Africans than citizens of a particular country; recently Rwandans who had lived in Tanzania for years were forcibly deported by the government (2) despite the fact that both countries are member states of the EAC and signed free movement into law. This is enough to explain how things would be a mess if rival countries like DRC, Sudan and Somalia were to join the bloc.

(1)  United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, ‘Assessing regional integration in Africa’, uneca.org, Vol.V, http://www.uneca.org/publications/assessing-regional-integration-africa-v

(2)  Catherine, Byaruhanga, ‘Thousands deported from Tanzania to Rwanda’, bbc.co.uk, 2 Sept 2013 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/18810.stm

Widening the East African Community, will help enlarge the common market, increase production and improve regional trade as people will be able to freely do business across more than five countries.

Prior to Rwanda and Burundi’s membership to the bloc in 2004, Kenya’s exports and imports to the EAC were Kshs 64 billion and Kshs 3 billion respectively this however increased after the two countries joined creating a single market of 133.5 million people. In 2009 Kenya’s exports had risen to Kshs 90.5 billion and imports to Kshs 12.5 billion [1].

Ethiopia, DRC and South Sudan are all mineral rich countries and are big potential markets for East Africa. Welcoming them to the community is predicted to double the production, imports and exports among member states [2] due to policies policies like the EAC trade facilitation, customs union and competition policy and law [2].

 [1] Mary, Odongo,’Institute of Economic Affairs; Towards an East African Community common market’, ieakenya.or.ke, 30 Jan 2011, http://www.ieakenya.or.ke/publications/doc_details/101-towards-an-east-african-community-common-market-challenges-and-opportunities?tmpl=component

[2] Ernest & Young, ‘The East Africa boom’, ey.com, http://www.ey.com/Publication/vwLUAssets/The_East_Africa_Boom:_Dont_be_left_behind/$FILE/130219_SGF_TL_East_email_version.pdf

[3] East African Community Customs, ‘market size, access and trade policy’, eu.int, http://www.eac.int/customs/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=50:eac-trade-info&catid=25:eac-customs-union

Widening the bloc will also widen the burden of satisfying all member states which will affect economic development. The discovery of oil in Uganda has prompted concerns about how it will be extracted as a result of a green light to foreign companies to do the job [1], and Rwanda’s natural gas remain untouched due to a lack of skilled labour despite the EAC freedom of movement policies. Why then bring a bigger burden of un-extracted mineral resources that cannot be handled by EAC? And the fact that Kenya has been able to profit from such integration has not done much to lift Burundi from extreme poverty Or prevent Tanzania’s slow growth [2]. When all members are looking to export natural resources there are few benefits to the bloc, the members find themselves competing in export markets.

[1] Oil review, ‘Uganda to sign oil drilling agreement with international oil firms’, oilreviewafrica.com, 15 April 2013, http://www.oilreviewafrica.com/exploration/exploration/uganda-to-sign-oil-drilling-agreement-with-international-oil-firms

[2] IMF, ‘Truly integrated market would bring benefits to East Africa’, imf.org, 15 March 2012, https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/survey/so/2012/CAR031512A.htm

Widening the East African Community will help provide a strong force and voice against insecurities, conflicts and insurgencies that have torn apart much of the region.

The current EAC member states have been at the fore front of maintaining peace and security in the region, with Burundi, Kenya and Uganda sending troops to Somalia and Rwanda sending troops to Darfur and CAR.

In March 2012, the USAID assessment on East Africa regional conflict and instability highlighted that the revival and expansion of the EAC would favour a vision of promoting peace in the region (1) pointing out the Lamu project aimed at creating a transport corridor linking South Sudan to northern Kenya and the coast. Widening the bloc will make it easy for member states to support their peacekeeping missions through the East Africa community military command and also help reduce interstate invasions like Sudan and South Sudan or Rwanda and DRC as they will now be united with more closely aligned interests.

(1)  USAID, ‘East Africa Regional conflict and instability Assessment, usaid.gov, March 2012, http://conflict.care2share.wikispaces.net/file/view/USAID%20East%20Africa%20Conflict%20Assessment%20March2012.pdf/393864676/USAID%20East%20Africa%20Conflict%20Assessment%20March2012.pdf

The EAC is not yet ready to fully support its missions. The East African Community military command have not helped in prevention of terrorist attacks in Kenya nor has it been able to stop the prolonged insecurities and conflicts in Burundi, besides it still needs improvement. The unity between Kenya and Uganda did not stop conflicts arising over ownership of Migingo islands on lake Victoria; membership would not mean that South Sudan and Sudan suddenly have similar interests or ameliorate their conflict.

Rwanda and Uganda have been recently accused of supporting insecurity in Eastern Congo (1), and the peace keeping missions in Somalia and Darfur are both AU and UN initiatives not the EAC. In practice the bloc is not yet ready to embark on such wider missions.

(1)  Louis, Charbonneau, and Michelle, Nicholls ‘Rwanda, Uganda arming Congo rebels- UN panel’, reuters.com, 17/10/2012 http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/17/us-congo-democratic-rwanda-uganda-idUSBRE89F1RQ20121017

improvement of education among member states. It has policies such as the introduction of the inter University council of education to ensure the quality of University education, and an ongoing process of harmonising education curricula in all member countries (1). However, Africa still remains the continent with poorest quality of education and has the lowest skilled/educated labour. A large number of children fail to access basic education (2). Enlarging and deepening the EAC will therefore enhance education standards on a large part of the African continent; such policies will lift weak academic institutions in DRC, South Sudan and Somalia which are typical of their poor education systems.

(1)  East African Community Education, ‘Harmonisation of education and training curricula in East Africa’ eac.int,  http://www.eac.int/education/index.php?option=com_content&id=53&Itemid=106

(2)  Kevin Watkins, ‘Narrowing Africa’s Education deficit’, brookings.com, January 2013,  http://www.brookings.edu/research/reports/2013/01/foresight-africa-education-watkins

Widening the EAC will affect the emerging education systems. Most of the countries with interest to join the EAC are characterised by poor education systems. Bringing Somalia, South Sudan and DRC, into the community would bring a huge challenge to the existing systems. The inter university council of education is a new established body, policies like harmonising the education curricula are still in process of implementation and this cannot be rated a success at the moment let alone be expanded to millions more children and youths. Additionally, there are still current member states like Burundi with crippled education systems (1), why not first focus internally and deepen these institutions before expanding?

(1)  Concern worldwide, Burundi, ‘education’, concernusa.org http://www.concernusa.org/burundi

Nkwame Nkurumah, one of the famous African heroes said “Africa must unite or perish”. This has been taken up by the African Union which is calling for integration across the continent (1). Widening and deepening the EAC will therefore shine a light to the ideology of Pan Africanism. Bringing more African states together under one bloc with the same vision and institutions will help people to work together regardless of ethnic or cultural differences. Citizens will feel more East Africans rather than citizens of a particular country as every citizen of the EAC member state is allowed to freely travel in the region with no difficulties or discrimination as a result of the East African Community’s freedom of movement(2).  This will therefore encourage other blocs like the ECOWAS and SADC to actively perform and widen hence creating a more united Africa.

(1)  African Union, ‘Celebrating Pan –Africanism and African renaissance’, au.int, 10 May 2013, http://summits.au.int/50th/21stsummit/news/celebrating-pan-africanism-and-african-renaissance

(2)  East African Community, Towards a common market, ‘Annex on the free movement of persons’, eac.int, http://www.eac.int/commonmarket/movement-of-persons.html

Pan-Africanism is more a dream than a reality. Widening the East African Community would actually alter and destroy the meaning of Pan-Africanism because of the many challenges that come with such integration (1). Currently there are disputes within the EAC itself with Tanzania and Burundi claiming to be sidelined from the other three states. People will never at any moment feel more East Africans than citizens of a particular country; recently Rwandans who had lived in Tanzania for years were forcibly deported by the government (2) despite the fact that both countries are member states of the EAC and signed free movement into law. This is enough to explain how things would be a mess if rival countries like DRC, Sudan and Somalia were to join the bloc.

(1)  United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, ‘Assessing regional integration in Africa’, uneca.org, Vol.V, http://www.uneca.org/publications/assessing-regional-integration-africa-v

(2)  Catherine, Byaruhanga, ‘Thousands deported from Tanzania to Rwanda’, bbc.co.uk, 2 Sept 2013 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/18810.stm

The EAC, though a progressing bloc, is premature for widening. 48% of its budget is derived from the EU and 22% from other donor agencies and governments. Membership subscriptions barely suffice to cover staff remuneration and other administrative costs leaving no funds to support development oriented programmes [1]. 71.3% of Congolese [2] and 50.6% of South Sudanese [3] live below the poverty line; how would the EAC support such regions with a crippled budget? Creating a common market would mean bringing together poor countries that have nothing to offer or learn from each other unlike the EU which has strong economies to support weaker ones and provide role models and expertise for development.

There is a greater need to deepen the bloc by ensuring that member states are able to meet the pledged costs towards the budget. The EAC needs to make sure planned initiatives like the monetary union, customs union, and unifying education systems are well coordinated and successful before widening.

[1] Dr. Khoti, Kamanga, ‘EAC Integration; progress achieved, challenges and opportunities’, ippmedia.com, 3 Nov 2013, http://www.ippmedia.com/frontend/?l=61095

[2] The World Bank, ‘Data; Congo,Dem Rep, world development indicators, worldbank.org, http://data.worldbank.org/country/congo-dem-rep

[3] The World Bank, ‘Data;South Sudan,word development indicators,worldbank.org, http://data.worldbank.org/country/south-sudan

Initially the EAC comprised of only three countries but after only 7 years, Rwanda and Burundi joined the bloc [1]. The new members however did not hamper the progress of the EAC but instead increased the rate of performance and improvement. If anything the two new countries added momentum in the operations of the bloc despite the fact that they were both economically weak. It is therefore not valid to assume that enlargement would hinder progress.

[1] East African Community, ‘About   EAC’, eac.int, http://www.eac.int/index.php?option=com_content&id=1&Itemid=53

Most of the countries showing interest in joining the EAC are still economically weak, politically unstable, and socially divided. Somalia is the poorest state in the world; it is unstable with a high rate of terrorism [1]. DRC has yet to fully end its civil war, and has large social divides [2]. And South Sudan is a newly independent country that has not yet finished forming its governing institutions but already faces conflicts both internal and external. Accepting all these countries to the East African community now would create instability; it would clear the way for more Al shabab attacks in both Kenya and Uganda due as the borders would be open, it would clear a path for the FDLR (a rebel group that includes some of those responsible for Rwanda’s genocide) from Congo to Rwanda, a threat that the EAC is not ready to manage.

[1] Ludger, Schadomsky, ‘No stability in sight for Somalia’, dw.de, 20 June 2013 http://www.dw.de/no-stability-in-sight-for-somalia/a-16896385

[2] Jason, Stearns, ‘The Congo; a revolution deferred’, sscr.org, 8 March 2012, http://forums.ssrc.org/african-futures/2012/03/08/congo-revolution-deferred/

Al shabaab attacks have continued to be a huge threat to both the Ugandan and Kenyan governments with the recent attack on Westgate shopping center in Nairobi [1] and the Lugogo cricket ground in Kampala [2] despite the tight immigration policies towards Somalis. FDLR has also continued to carry out attacks in Rwanda regardless Rwanda’s efforts to prevent them [3]. Tighter immigration controls therefore has been shown not to provide solution to these threats. Instead uniting all these countries would give ground for the East African Military Command to handle such threats.

[1] AFP, ‘Westgate mall, Alshabaab gunmen were suicide commandos’, telegraph.co.uk,12 Nov 2013, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/kenya/10443386/Westgate-mall-al-Shabaab-gunmen-were-suicide-commandos.html

[2] BBC world news, ‘Somali militants behind Kampala world cup bombings’, bbc.co.uk, 12 July 2010, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10602791

[3] Reuters, ‘Rwanda says FDLR cross from Congo attack wardens’, reuters.com, 2 Dec 2012, http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/02/us-rwanda-attack-idUSBRE8B10A020121202

All countries that have shown interest in joining the EAC are member states of the AU which oversees integration in African countries; there is no reason then for them to join another bloc that has the same aim as the African Union unless it is no longer functioning.

Countries like DRC and Sudan are geographically located in different regions than East Africa and this would breach the meaning of the bloc. Additionally, these individual countries are members of other regional organisations like COMESA and SADC which puts a challenge of flexibility in adopting different policies from separate blocs. [1] For example how could a customs union operate if DRC were to be a member of two separate customs unions? any external barriers between the two could be bypassed by going through the DRC.

[1] Dinka,T,Kennes,W, ‘Africa’s regional integration arrangements; history and challenges’, ecdpm.org, 2007, http://www.ecdpm.org/Web_ECDPM/Web/Content/Navigation.nsf/index2?readform&http://www.ecdpm.org/Web_ECDPM/Web/Content/Content.nsf/0/0aff1ee6dde15146c12579ce004774b2?OpenDocument

The EAC does not have a general rule that membership is only reserved for countries in the Eastern region of Africa, and the presence of the African Union does not deem other regional blocs useless. To achieve growth and integration on the continent, there is great need to unite regionally[1]. Having members that are also members of other regional organisations simply helps bring those organisations together to the benefit of all.

[1] Michael, Rettig, Anne W. Kamau and Augustus, Sammy, Muluv,’ The African Union can do more to support regional integration’, brookings.edu, 17 May 2013, http://www.brookings.edu/blogs/up-front/posts/2013/05/17-african-union-support-regional-integration-kamau