Ethiopia is set to become the 9th member state of East Africa Community (EAC), just a few months after Somali’s admission to the bloc.
This was disclosed by Peninah Malonza, the Cabinet Secretary for Ministry of EAC, Arid and Semi-arid Lands and Regional Development.
Speaking while leading a relief food distribution drive in Kitui Central Constituency, Malonza announced that talks between Ethiopia and EAC Summit Heads of states are in the last stages and soon Ethiopia will be part of the bloc.
Aside from Ethiopia’s admission, the EAC partner states also seeks to harmonize critical policies and put in place requisite institutions to attain a single currency for the region by the end of this year as outlined in the EAC Monetary Union Protocol.
East African Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental organisation of eight (8) Partner States, comprising the Republic of Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Kenya, the Republic of Rwanda, the Federal Republic of Somalia, the Republic of South Sudan, the Republic of Uganda and the United Republic of Tanzania, with its headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
The organisation was founded in 1967, collapsed in 1977, and was revived on 7 July 2000.
EAC guides the free movement of goods, people, labour, services and capital from one Partner State to another as well as the rights of establishment and residence without restrictions.
One of the primary advantages of East African Integration is the promotion of economic growth and increased trade. By eliminating trade barriers and facilitating the movement of goods and services across borders, member states can tap into a larger market.
The EAC was established with a vision to set up a prosperous, competitive, secure, stable and politically united East Africa; and provide platform to widen and deepen Economic, Political, Social and Culture integration in order to improve the quality of life of the people of East Africa through increased.
The EAC is currently home to 174 million people with a surface area of 2,467,202 sq. km. The combined GDP of the region is about US$163.4 billion (at purchasing power parity, about US$473 billion) and the average GDP per capita is about US$941 (at purchasing power parity, $2,722).
In addition to the EAC market, investors in the Partner States have access to other African markets (e.g. COMESA, SADC and AfCFTA) as well as to international markets through preferential trade arrangements.
The internal EAC market has over 174 million consumers, while the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) comprises 20 member states with a population of over 460 million. Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda and Burundi are all members of COMESA.
