The 20th Ordinary Meeting of the Summit of the East African Community (EAC) Heads of State is set for Friday, November 30, 2018 at the Arusha International Conference Centre (AICC) in Arusha, Tanzania.
The Meeting of heads of state was preceded by the 38th Ordinary Meeting of the EAC Council of Ministers that runs from November 25-28, 2018, also in Arusha, Tanzania.
Among the items on the Provisional Agenda of the 20th Summit of the EAC Heads of State are: the status of ratification of various protocols; the status of resolution of long outstanding non-tariff barriers, and; the progress report on the adoption of Political Confederation as a Transitional Model to the East African Political Federation.
Other items on the Agenda include: the roadmap for the accelerated integration of the Republic of South Sudan into the EAC, and; the verification exercise for the admission of the Republic of Somalia into the Community.
The Summit will also consider reports on modalities for the promotion of Motor Vehicle Assembly in East Africa aimed at reducing importation of used vehicles into the Community, and; the review of the textile and leather sector with a view to developing a strong and competitive domestic sector that gives consumers better choice than imported textile and footwear.
At their 19th Ordinary Meeting held in Kampala, Uganda on 23rd February, 2018, the Summit directed the EAC Council of Ministers to explore the possibilities of developing the automotive industry in East Africa by reducing the importation of used vehicles from outside the region and thereby make the region more competitive.
The Summit, at the same meeting in Kampala, directed the Council to make the region more competitive by prioritising the development of a competitive domestic textile and leather sector that will give East Africans a wider range of choices in terms of affordable, new and quality clothes, shoes and other leather products.
The forthcoming Summit will also review progress report by the Council of Ministers on the Summit Directive on having two (2) Deputy Secretaries General at the Community recruited competitively on a rotational basis among the Partner States.
The Summit at its 19th Ordinary Meeting held in Kampala, decided that there will only be two Deputy Secretaries General at the EAC who shall be recruited competitively on a rotational basis.
The Summit is expected to assent to various Bills passed by the East Legislative Assembly, namely: the EAC Polythene Materials Control Bill, 2016; the Administration of the East African Court of Justice Bill, 2018; the EAC Monetary Institute Bill, 2018, and; the EAC Customs Management (Amendment) Bill, 2018.
The Summit will further consider the implementation status of the EAC Customs Union and Common Market Protocols in addition to the current financial status of the Community.
The EAC is of six countries: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.