People Daily Kenya
By Zadock Angira
Thursday August 31, 2023
Somalia is finally set to become the latest member state of the East African Community (EAC), almost 11 years after Mogadishu first applied for membership.
It has already made a critical step in the negotiations stage and is set become the eighth member of the bloc after Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) that formally joined in April 2022.
Already, the negotiations for admitting Somalia began on August 2022 and will end on September 5.
The final decision regarding Somalia’s admission into the EAC however rests with the Heads of State Summit scheduled for November, according to Dr Abdusalam Omer, the Special Envoy of the President of the Federal Republic of Somalia to the EAC.
The nine-day negotiations have brought together experts from the seven EAC partner states, the EAC secretariat, East African Legislative Assembly, East African Court of Justice, and their counterparts from the Federal Republic of Somalia.
Fiscal standing
The move will massively boost the EAC’s geographical reach, boost Somalia’s efforts to improve its multilateral and fiscal standing, and the exploitation of Somalia’s blue economy resources such as fish will boost the regional economy.
The EAC -through some of its member states like Kenya, Uganda and Burundi -is already contributing to peace and security in Somalia with partner states providing troops as part of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).
The mission has made the country largely peaceful, despite the sporadic attacks by the terrorist outfit Al Shabaab.
“The potential admission of Somalia into the East African Community presents a significant opportunity to strengthen ties, build bridges, and forge a future of shared prosperity,” Dr Omer said.
Late January this year, a team from the seven-nation bloc comprising DRC, Tanzania, Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, South Sudan, and Uganda travelled to Somalia to assess the country readiness.
The team later reviewed Somalia’s institutional and legal frameworks; its policies, strategies, and programmes; and its areas of cooperation with the EAC.
According to Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, the country will benefit significantly through the increased movement of goods, services and people across the bloc in addition to expanding intra-regional trade.
Somalia, with a population of 17 million people, is in the middle of an IMF programme which has disbursed about USD 400 million to date, and this year hopes to complete the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries global debt forgiveness process.
The locals are also likely to experience high levels of acute food insecurity, with hundreds of thousands of others likely to face famine.
The crisis is exacerbated by a punishing drought, the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war, and Somalia’s vulnerability to climate shocks, and the danger of terrorism.
The EAC Secretary General Peter Mathuki has said joining the community would enable Somalia to benefit from the EAC’s regional infrastructure projects such as roads, railways, and energy networks.
“These projects aim to improve connectivity, enhance transportation links, and boost regional trade, ultimately supporting Somalia’s economic development and integration,” he said.
The EAC membership offers a crucial regional forum for working collaboratively on Somalia’s challenges and formulating solutions with its leaders.
Longest coastline
Since the bloc is aiming at full implementation of a single customs territory before 2026, there shall be free movement of goods, people, labour, services and capital. There are also plans for a single regional currency. “Somalia has the longest national coastline of over 3000km in Africa, linking Africa to the Arabian Peninsula, which the region can tap into to increase intra-regional trade and improve the lives of East Africans,” Mathuki said in Nairobi.
Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for East African Community, ASALs and Regional Development Rebecca Miano has said the negotiations are being held in accordance with a directive by the 22nd Extraordinary Summit to the Secretariat and the Council to commence negotiations with Somalia.
Special Envoy of the President of the Federal Republic of Somalia to the EAC Dr Abdusalam Omer. PD/courtesy