The East Africa Community (EAC) Secretary General Peter Mathuki has said that plans to have Somalia join the community are in advanced stages.
Speaking during the ongoing retreat of the community in Machakos, Mathuki said a mission to assess Somalia’s situation and its readiness to join the block will be sent by the end of January.
Mathuki said the decision to admit the Horn of Africa country is based on the nation’s rich economic potential, owing to its extensive coastline, which can help boost tourism and fish farming.
“The exploitation of Somalia’s blue economy resources such as fish and the expansive coastline is also set to boost the regional economy,” said Mathuki.
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The EAC boss noted that although Somalia is grappling with challenges such as insecurity, there is a need to look and the broader picture and see the benefits, adding that the challenges can be better addressed if the country is in the community.
“Admitting Somalia into EAC will be very important because whichever issues they have, such as Al-Shabaab, we will be able to handle them within the framework of EAC because if we keep them out, then we don’t have even the mandate to be involved in what they are doing,” said the EAC boss.
Boosted trade
The admission of Somalia comes at a time when the intra-trade within the community continued to blossom. The EAC secretariat reported that the trade had hit $10.17 billion in September 2022.
He attributed the same to political goodwill among the leaders across the member countries, who worked harmoniously to eliminate non-tariff barriers.
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“Intra-regional trade within the EAC is on an upward trajectory, standing at US$10.17 billion as of September 2022. Intra-EAC trade grew from 13% in 2019, at a value of $ 7.1 billion, to 15% in 2021, at a value of $9.5 billion,” said the community’s secretariat.
Mathuki said they are in the race to ensure the community gets a common currency in the next four years, which will boost trade more by making EAC borderless.
“The single currency will ease business and movement of persons within the region. It is in line with our goal to make the region borderless so that people can move and trade freely as envisioned in the Common Market Protocol,” he said.
The secretary-general said the next step towards the realization of the currency is the meeting of ministers from member countries, which will decide on the location East African Monetary Institute that will facilitate the establishment of the East African Community Central Bank.
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