By Elijah Odanga
The Republic of Somalia is on the verge of being admitted as the 8th member of the East African Community (EAC).
The verification team appointed by the EAC headquarters after scrutiny referred its report to a committee of the community which will meet the Somali delegation in Nairobi for negotiations this week on the possibility of the country’s admission into the regional bloc.
The opening ceremony for the negotiations was held at the Kenya School of Government (KSG) on Tuesday, August 22nd, 2023 in the Kenyan capital.
In October 2022, following the directive of the 22nd Summit of EAC Heads of State, the EAC Secretary General Peter Mathuki visited H.E. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President of the Federal Republic of Somalia to appraise him on the procedures of admission into the East African Community.
At the beginning of this year (25th January to 3rd February), the East African Community sent a Team of Technical Experts to Somalia to verify and assess the preparedness of Somalia to join the EAC as the 8th Member.
The Report of the EAC Verification Team confirmed that the Federal Republic of Somalia already has social, economic, cultural and geographical ties with the Partner States of the East African Community and enjoys good working relations with them.
The Verification Team also confirmed that the Federal Republic of Somalia meets the basic requirements of the Treaty, for admission of foreign countries into the East African Community.
Uganda’s representative in the negotiations between the East African Community (EAC) and the Federal Republic of Somalia for the admission of Somalia into joining the regional bloc, Deputy Director General II in the Office of the President Lt Col Emmy Katabazi ,is welcomed by Somalia’s Minister for State, Commerce and Industry Abdisalam Sharif and Somalia’s Ambasadeur in Tanzania Zahra Ali Hassan for the talks at the Kenya School of Government in Nairobi
During the negotiations this week, the EAC Team will highlight to the Somali delegation, benefits, obligations and commitments of Partner States under the Treaty which will be the basis for the negotiations in good faith by both Teams. The negotiations will also provide clarifications to both Teams on matters that were identified during the verifications exercise.
“I am very optimistic that at the end of this exercise, we will have a clear report for presentation to the next Summit for consideration. I wish to confirm the commitment of the EAC Secretariat to facilitate the negotiations,” said Mathuki.
Kenya’s East African Community and Regional Development Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano on behalf of the Council of Ministers, wished for fruitful negotiations that she believed will ultimately benefit both Somalia and the EAC.
“The negotiations between EAC and Somalia are in line with the EAC’s mission of widening and deepening the integration process. The negotiations are also in line with the African Union’s goal of putting in place an African Economic Community by the year 2063. To that end, the EAC looks forward to an expanded and vibrant bloc, with high volumes of trade within itself as well as with other blocs. This, primarily, is because we intend to create wealth and prosperity for our people.,” said Miano.
“A big and expanded market that the admission of Somalia will usher in will be a major boost for the private sector, itself a great milestone in the integration process. The Community is already contributing to peace and security in Somalia with Partner States providing troops as part of the African Union Mission in Somalia. The people of the rest of East Africa are eager to welcome their brothers and sisters from Somalia into the Community,” she said.
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