Museveni Heads to Arusha for EAC 25th Anniversary Celebrations

President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has today departed for Arusha, Tanzania, to join fellow regional leaders in celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the East African Community (EAC).

The event, themed “Promoting Trade, Sustainable Development and Peace and Security for Improved Livelihoods”, highlights the region’s commitment to fostering integration and prosperity. 

The President was seen off at Entebbe International Airport by the Minister for Presidency, Hon. Babirye Milly Babalanda, the Head of Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet, Ms Lucy Nakyobe, the Commander of Air Force, Lt. Gen. Charles Okidi, the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Mr James Ochaya and the Deputy Commissioner General of Prisons, Mr Samuel Akena. 

The East African Community (EAC) is an intergovernmental organisation in East Africa. The EAC’s membership consists of eight states: Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Federal Republic of Somalia, the Republics of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania.

The organisation was founded in 1967, collapsed in 1977, and was revived on 7th July 2000. The main objective of the EAC is to foster regional economic integration. Salva Kiir Mayardit, the president of South Sudan, is the current EAC chairman.

In 2008, after negotiations with the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the EAC agreed to an expanded free trade area including the member states of all three organisations. The EAC is an integral part of the African Economic Community.

The EAC is a potential precursor to the establishment of the East African Federation, a proposed federation of its members into a single sovereign state. In 2010, the EAC launched its own common market for goods, labour, and capital within the region, to create a common currency and eventually a full political federation. In 2013, a protocol was signed outlining their plans for launching a monetary union within 10 years. In September 2018, a committee was formed to begin the process of drafting a regional constitution.