Political federation to promote harmonious, balanced development
Sep 22, 2011
Debate on the East African Community integration is rife and it is a positive trend. The Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community signed on November 30, 1999 and came into force on July 7, 2000 is clear on political federation.
Debate on the East African Community integration is rife and it is a positive trend. The Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community signed on November 30, 1999 and came into force on July 7, 2000 is clear on political federation.
Article 5 (1) provides that “The objectives of the Community shall be to develop policies and programmes aimed at widening and deepening cooperation among the partner states in political, economic, social and cultural fields, research and technology, defence, security and legal and judicial affairs, for their mutual benefitâ€.
In essence, the main objective of integration is to widen and deepen cooperation for mutual benefit. Article 5(2) of the treaty further elaborates that, in pursuance of the objective, “the partner states undertake to establish … a Customs Union, a Common Market, subsequently a Monetary Union and ultimately a political federation in order to strengthen and regulate the industrial, commercial, infrastructural, cultural, social, political; and other relations of the partner states. This is meant to accelerate harmonious and balanced development and sustained expansion of economic activities, the benefit of which shall be equitably shared.
Political federation is the climax of our integration. What remains is how and when. Federating at this level will strengthen and regulate the relations of partner states. This means that federating at a political level will address the concerns which have been raised such as different levels of economies, security, land and resources. The fact is that integration is already underway in all sectors. One clear example is the increasing number of people criss-crossing the EAC on a daily basis.
I am reliably informed that there are more than five flights from Kampala to Nairobi daily. This is obviously fuelled by a high demand. If you take into account other transport modes, today, the high mobility of people in the region is unprecedented. Such mobility enables all partner states to attain mutual benefits.
Equitable distribution of benefits takes into account the fact that although a partner state may not contribute equally for example in form of products on the market, its contribution as a market is taken into account. Todate, all partner states have benefitted from the intra-regional trade. The fact that in the short run or at some point, a partner state may suffer an imbalance is catered for in the treaty.
Article 7 of the Treaty on Operational Principles of the Community provides that “The principles that shall govern the practical achievement of the objectives of the Community shall include… the equitable distribution of benefits accruing or to be derived from the operations of the Community and measures to address economic imbalances that may arise from such operations.â€
In essence, short term losses or any other loss that may incur will be addressed. What is reassuring and definite is that in the long term all of us will reap from the cooperation. The argument that for example, Kenya’s economy is stronger and may thus disadvantage other partner states is hollow because there will never be a time when all the EAC partner states’ economies will be at par. And even if all partner states were economically at par, the need to cooperate remains imperative.
Each partner state has comparative advantages which, when combined, have the potential to transform the region into a middle class economy in one generation.
We either integrate or remain marginal in the world economy and in global politics.
The EAC integration is a matter of survival. The fact that more countries have applied to join the EAC is clear evidence that we are on the right track. No one would be keen to rush into a burning house. At the East African Legislative Assembly level, focus is on expediting the integration process. This is accompanied by debates on topical issues, which include the need to converge time zones, the need to agree on use of the same driving lanes, the need to institute similar charges for intra-regional travel—especially air fares, promotion of the use of Kiswahili for effective communication, preservation of the eco-system in order to conserve natural resources and maintain food security reserves, and mechanisms to banish poverty.
Integration provides us with an opportunity to learn from each other as education is central. The fact that currently three out of five presidents of the EAC partner states benefited from education systems within the Community speaks volumes. President Museveni studied at The University of Dar-es-Salaam, President Mwai Kibaki studied at Makerere University, and President Kagame studied at Ntare School.
Political federation remains the ultimate goal asit constitutes the culmination of the integration process.
Article 5 (1) provides that “The objectives of the Community shall be to develop policies and programmes aimed at widening and deepening cooperation among the partner states in political, economic, social and cultural fields, research and technology, defence, security and legal and judicial affairs, for their mutual benefitâ€.
In essence, the main objective of integration is to widen and deepen cooperation for mutual benefit. Article 5(2) of the treaty further elaborates that, in pursuance of the objective, “the partner states undertake to establish … a Customs Union, a Common Market, subsequently a Monetary Union and ultimately a political federation in order to strengthen and regulate the industrial, commercial, infrastructural, cultural, social, political; and other relations of the partner states. This is meant to accelerate harmonious and balanced development and sustained expansion of economic activities, the benefit of which shall be equitably shared.
Political federation is the climax of our integration. What remains is how and when. Federating at this level will strengthen and regulate the relations of partner states. This means that federating at a political level will address the concerns which have been raised such as different levels of economies, security, land and resources. The fact is that integration is already underway in all sectors. One clear example is the increasing number of people criss-crossing the EAC on a daily basis.
I am reliably informed that there are more than five flights from Kampala to Nairobi daily. This is obviously fuelled by a high demand. If you take into account other transport modes, today, the high mobility of people in the region is unprecedented. Such mobility enables all partner states to attain mutual benefits.
Equitable distribution of benefits takes into account the fact that although a partner state may not contribute equally for example in form of products on the market, its contribution as a market is taken into account. Todate, all partner states have benefitted from the intra-regional trade. The fact that in the short run or at some point, a partner state may suffer an imbalance is catered for in the treaty.
Article 7 of the Treaty on Operational Principles of the Community provides that “The principles that shall govern the practical achievement of the objectives of the Community shall include… the equitable distribution of benefits accruing or to be derived from the operations of the Community and measures to address economic imbalances that may arise from such operations.â€
In essence, short term losses or any other loss that may incur will be addressed. What is reassuring and definite is that in the long term all of us will reap from the cooperation. The argument that for example, Kenya’s economy is stronger and may thus disadvantage other partner states is hollow because there will never be a time when all the EAC partner states’ economies will be at par. And even if all partner states were economically at par, the need to cooperate remains imperative.
Each partner state has comparative advantages which, when combined, have the potential to transform the region into a middle class economy in one generation.
We either integrate or remain marginal in the world economy and in global politics.
The EAC integration is a matter of survival. The fact that more countries have applied to join the EAC is clear evidence that we are on the right track. No one would be keen to rush into a burning house. At the East African Legislative Assembly level, focus is on expediting the integration process. This is accompanied by debates on topical issues, which include the need to converge time zones, the need to agree on use of the same driving lanes, the need to institute similar charges for intra-regional travel—especially air fares, promotion of the use of Kiswahili for effective communication, preservation of the eco-system in order to conserve natural resources and maintain food security reserves, and mechanisms to banish poverty.
Integration provides us with an opportunity to learn from each other as education is central. The fact that currently three out of five presidents of the EAC partner states benefited from education systems within the Community speaks volumes. President Museveni studied at The University of Dar-es-Salaam, President Mwai Kibaki studied at Makerere University, and President Kagame studied at Ntare School.
Political federation remains the ultimate goal asit constitutes the culmination of the integration process.