44th Ordinary Meeting of the EAC Council of Ministers currently underway in Arusha, Tanzania
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 19th November, 2023: The 44th Ordinary Meeting of the East African Community (EAC) Council of Ministers is currently underway at the EAC Headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
The five-day meeting from 18th – 22nd November, 2023 is being conducted through the Session of Senior Officials which ends on Monday, 20th November, 2023, the session of the Coordination Committee (Permanent /Principal/Under Secretaries) set for Tuesday, 21st November, 2023 and the Ministerial session that will take place on Wednesday, 22nd November, 2023.
Among the items on the Agenda of the meeting are the considerations of various reports including those on: the Implementation of Previous Decisions of the Council; Office of the Secretary General; Sustainable Financing of the Community, Hosting of EAC Organs and Institutions, and; Customs, Trade and Monetary Affairs.
Other matters to be considered are reports on: Infrastructure, Productive, Social and Political Sectors; Finance Matters, Human Political Matters; Customs and Trade, and; Finance and Human Resources Matters. Also on the agenda of the Council are: Reports of other EAC Organs, namely the East African Legislative Assembly and East African Court of Justice, and Reports of EAC Institutions.
The Council is also expected to consider the Draft EAC Calendar of Activities for the period October 2023 – June 2024.
The Council of Ministers is the policy-making Organ of the Community. The Council consists of the Ministers responsible for EAC Affairs and/or Regional Cooperation of each Partner State and such other Ministers of the Partner State as each Partner State shall determine.
Among its functions, the Council promotes, monitors and keeps under constant review the implementation of the programmes of the Community and ensures the proper functioning of the regional bloc.
Speaking during the opening of the Session of Senior Officials, the EAC Deputy Secretary General in charge of Infrastructure, Productive, Social and Political Sectors, Hon. Andrea Ariik Malueth, commended all Partner States for preparing to attend the COP 28 Negotiations in Dubai, United Arab Emirates and articulating one EAC position.
Hon. Ariik informed the Senior Officials that since the last Council meeting in Bujumbura, Burundi in March 2023, a number of developments have unfolded, including consultations on the EAC Political Confederation Constitution in the Republic of Kenya, and the long-awaited negotiations with the Federal Republic of Somalia for its admission into the EAC.
“I am certain that you will have an opportunity to appreciate these developments and more in details in the course of this Meeting,” said the Deputy Secretary General.
The DSG reaffirmed the EAC Secretariat's commitment to working with Partner States and Development Partners to coordinate the integration agenda, adding that the implementation of the integration agenda requires a regular flow of remittances.
“I thank all Partner States for remittances received so far and urge them to sustain the momentum,” he added.
The 44th Council of Ministers shall be followed by the High-Level Forum on Climate Change, Food Security and Environmental Sustainability and the 23rd Ordinary Summit of the EAC Heads of State to be held on 23rd and 24th November, 2023 respectively.
Also present at the session were the Chairperson of the meeting, Mr. Jean Pierre Bacanamwo (Republic of Burundi), the Rapporteur, Mr. Maker Mabor (Republic of South Sudan), and the EAC Deputy Secretary General in charge of Customs, Trade and Monetary Affairs, Ms. Annette Ssemuwemba.
For more information, please contact:
Simon Peter Owaka
Senior Public Relations OfficerCorporate Communications and Public Affairs DepartmentEAC SecretariatArusha, TanzaniaTel: +255 768 552087Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
About the East African Community Secretariat:
The East African Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental organisation of seven Partner States, comprising the Republic of Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Kenya, the Republic of Rwanda, the Republic of South Sudan, the Republic of Uganda and the United Republic of Tanzania, with its headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
The EAC Secretariat is ISO 9001: 2015 Certified