EAC-USAID Meeting on Operationalization of the Regional Development Objective Agreement kicks off in Arusha
A one-day meeting between the East African Community (EAC) Secretariat and the United States Agency for Development (USAID) on the operationalization of the five-year Regional Development Objectives Grant Agreement (RDOAG) kicked off at the EAC Headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania today.
USAID granted EAC US$194 million under the RDOAG which was launched in November last year, monies that will be spent on shared development goals over the next five years.
Speaking during the opening session of the meeting, USAID Deputy Mission Director for Kenya and East Africa, Ms. Candace Buzzard, said the RDOAG provides for: changes in the way USAID will do its business; strengthen USAID-EAC Partnership; stronger collaboration, coordination and communication, and; institutional strengthening.
Ms. Buzzard said USAID will coordinate more closely with the EAC to ensure better delivery of project goals. In his remarks, EAC Secretary General Amb. Libérat Mfumukeko noted that USAID’s gesture had sent a strong signal of its desire to support the Community attain its goals.
Amb. Mfumukeko said the USAID contribution would enable the Community to achieve many things. Out of the US$194 million, about US$30 million will finance institutional strengthening within the EAC Secretariat while the remainder will support other development partners in their efforts to contribute to the EAC regional integration agenda.
Among the sectors to be funded under the RDOAG include health, environment and natural resources, climate change, trade, security of populations and energy.