What You Need to Know:
Following a ceremony at the East African Community’s (EAC) headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania today, Somalia has formally joined the East African economic and political bloc.
Federal Republic of Somalia is now officially a full member of the East African Community after depositing her Instrument of Ratification with the Secretary General of the East African Community at the EAC Headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania @TheVillaSomalia @pmathuki pic.twitter.com/8BDh2pmpOz
— East African Community (@jumuiya) March 4, 2024
The Federal Republic of Somalia is now the bloc’s 8th partner, alongside The Republic of Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of Kenya, the Republic of Rwanda, the Republic of South Sudan, the Republic of Uganda, and the United Republic of Tanzania.
After depositing its instrument of ratification of the Treaty of Accession with the EAC Secretary General at a ceremony held at the EAC Headquarters, the nation is now able to develop a ‘roadmap’ for the implementation of EAC commitments.
Peter Mathuki, Secretary-General of the EAC stated, “the roadmap will detail how the Federal Republic of Somalia will implement various EAC Commitments such as the Customs Union, Common Market, Monetary Union and Political Federation.”
“Somalia boasts the longest national coastline of over 3,000kms in Africa, linking Africa to the Arab Peninsula, which the region can tap into to exploit Somalia’s blue economic resources and increase intra-regional trade and improve the lives of East Africans,” said Mathuki.
The Details:
Somalia’s new membership in the EAC signals the bloc’s intent to further solidify its influence in the region, despite the existence of conflicts between some of its member states, particularly Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Additionally, the EAC has faced difficulty in undertaking security operations, as seen in the withdrawal of EAC troops from the Congo in December 2023, after Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi accused EAC troops of ‘colluding with rebels.’